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CHRIST IN THE HOME 

- OR-- 

The Culture of Family Religion 


GERARD B. F. HALLOCK, D. D. 

Author of “Journeying in the Land Where Jesus Lived, 3 ’ “God’s 
Whispered Secrets,” “Teachings of Jesus Concerning 
the Christian Life,” “Upward Steps,” 

“Beauty in God’s Word,” etc. 


(t As for me and my house, we 
will serve the Lord ”—Joshua 24:15. 


PUBLISHED FOR 

The Family Altar League 
—by— 

THE GLAD TIDINGS PUBLISHING COMPANY 

Lakeside Building, Chicago, III. 





d>V+5£(, 


Copyright, 1911 

BY 

The Glad Tidings Publishing Co. 


$ 1 . 0 V 


©Gl A303184 


THE FAMILY ALTAR LEAGUE 


Which I esteem one of the most 
fundamental and useful Christian 
agencies of our time, this book 
is dedicated. 


The Author. 














































































































. 


















J . 








. 




•• 









































CONTENTS 


Introduction. 13 

A Foreword. 15 

How to Have a Happy New Year. 19 

A Daily Rate for Every Day. 23 

The Uplifted Face. 26 

Calling and Conduct. 31 

Religion in the Home . 37 

Building Skyward. 42 

Forgetting Disciples. 46 

Solitary Places in Life. 51 

Fogs and Faith. 55 

The Duty and Influence of Family Worship 3 .. 60 

Christ Dwelling Within. 65 

Followers of That Which is Good. 69 

An Age Out of Breath. 73 

The Peace Christ Gives. 77 

Resurrection Love Lessons. 80 

Easter Hope and Duty . 84 

The Brands of Christ. 89 

The Power of the Gospel. 93 

Fag-End Religion. 98 

The Truth Lovingly Told. 103 

Spiritual Witchcraft. 106 

Appearance and Reality. 109 

The Supreme Motive. 114 

Seasonable Speech. 117 

Giving is Getting. 121 





























The Ministry of Children. 125 

Present Tense Christianity. 129 

Spiritual Attentiveness. 132 

Some Thoughts for the Fourth of July. 137 

The Christian’s Goodly Heritage. 142 

Life in True Proportion. 146 

Gladness in God’s Reign. 151 

The Ideal of Christian Life. 155 

Motives to Cheerfulness. 159 

Unload Your Cares. 164 

The Ministry of Little Things. 169 

Things Money Cannot Buy. 173 

Work as a Means of Grace... 177 

The Call for Continuance. 181 

One Day at a Time.’. 187 

The Divine and the Human in the Church. 190 

The Form and Power of Godliness. 195 

The Pearl of Great Price—Sought. 200 

The Folly of Mote-Pulling. 206 

True Christian Soldiership. 210 

Decapitated Temptations. 214 

Presumptuous Sins. 218 

The Best Gifts. 222 

Reasons for Thanksgiving. 226 

Joyful Thanksgiving. 231 

Lost Secrets and an Open Secret. 236 

Spiritual Poverty. 240 

God Made Visible in Christ. 245 

The Dayspring from on High. 250 

Looking out for Port. 256 

Hold Fast Thy Crown. 260 

The Sweet Incense of Family Prayer. 263 

Grace Before Meat. 270 

Children’s Prayers. 273 

Closet and Altar. 276 






































» 























































INTRODUCTORY WORDS 


It is a genuine pleasure to write these few intro¬ 
ductory words to a book such as the author of “Christ 
in the Home, or The Culture of Family Religion” 
is herewith presenting to the Christian public. 

Thank God, the truth is being emphasized in 
these days that Christ must be given his rightful 
place in the professedly Christian home, if we are to 
entertain any hope for the coming kingdom of right¬ 
eousness in the midst of the multifarious influences 
of modern life that are making for other than the 
things of God. 

The home is the moulding-room of character; it 
is the training school of destiny and how can we 
expect the sons and daughters of this day to be 
otherwise than irreligious and worldy or sometimes 
even wicked as long as the influences which tend 
toward godliness are quite forgotten while the par¬ 
ents join with their offspring in the untiring pursuit 
of the pleasures and treasures of the life that now is. 

Among these influences the Family Altar stands 
pre-eminently conspicuous. Oh, the uncounted mul¬ 
titudes which this blessed custom has kept from go¬ 
ing wrong! And though some have gone wrong in 
spite of it, in after years when the voices of that dear 
old place have grown silent and the old homestead 
has become the property of others, the memory of 
those sweet and holy hours has brought many a 
^ XIII 


INTRODUCTORY WORDS 

wanderer back in tears to mother’s and to father’s 
God. 

Old John Randolph said, “I should have been an 
atheist had it not been for the recollection and mem¬ 
ory of the time when my mother used to take my 
little hand in hers and cause me on my knees to say, 
“Our Father Who Art In Heaven.” 

Dr. Hallock has done well in writing this volume 
at this particular time, calling the home, as it does, 
back to the dear old custom of family prayer. It is 
timely indeed. Coming abreast of the Family Altar 
League and other similar endeavors it furnishes a 
mighty inspiration and impetus to the work they are 
doing. 

The book is written in Dr. Hallock’s usual clear 
and interesting style and each chapter when begun 
holds you to the end. It is destined to be an epoch- 
making volume in this department of Christian litera¬ 
ture. Every home should have it, and even as we 
pen these introductory words we find ourselves pray¬ 
ing that it may find the widest possible circulation. 

A more appropriate volume for a wedding pres¬ 
ent one could scarcely conceive; and with the inser¬ 
tion of a proper blank form for clergymen to fill out, 
as some of them are being prepared, it will most cer¬ 
tainly prove an ideal gift from the minister to the 
newly-wedded he unites, as a marriage certificate and 
souvenir of their wedding day. 

May the blessing of God rest upon this book and 
may the day soon return when the family altar will 
be the rule in the Christian homes of America and 
not the exception. 

WILLIAM EDWARD BIEDERWOLF. 
Monticello, Indiana, September 1, 1911 . 


A FOREWORD 


Within the past few years the Church has felt the thrill 
and blessing of several new and sudden movements for 
progress and uplift within her own bounds. The Brother¬ 
hood movement is one. The Adult Bible Class movement 
is another. The widespread establishment of Mission 
Study Classes is another. But of the various new move¬ 
ments not one has been received more gratefully or has given 
promise of more profound results and widespread blessing 
than the organized and increasingly successful efforts of 
the Family Altar League to lead parents to establish in their 
homes the family altar. The promotion of the movement is 
of necessity by quiet means and results cannot be fully 
known. But of this we are sure, that nothing could be more 
wise or more resultful than such effort. It was one of our 
profoundest present day thinkers who recently said: “We 
can never save America until we turn the forces of our 
endeavor across the threshold of the American home.” The 
very occasion of his remark was in recognition of the fact 
that there is already under vigorous headway a real advance 
in this direction. 

As goes the home so goes the world. Everything that is 
good in the church or in society is first planted, tended, 
shielded and nurtured in good homes. The Church must 
look for its spring and source and fountain head in the spir¬ 
itual life of the Christian home. Why shall we not expect 
the Christian home, as in former days, to be the nursery of 
XV 


A FOREWORD 


true piety, where religious principle shall root itself deeply 
in the hearts of parents and children alike? Why shall we 
not definitely expect that the genius and temper and spirit 
of the home shall be such as to foster the fear of the Lord 
and high regard for his ever-blessed Word?—that it shall 
be so hedged and fenced and safeguarded against the influ¬ 
ence and contagion of the world that it shall be a place 
where Christ himself shall dwell and be filled with the aroma 
of his presence and the atmosphere of his love? 

To this end nothing is more important than the estab¬ 
lishment and maintenance of the family altar. Said John 
Howard, the distinguished philanthropist, “Wherever I 
have a tent, there God shall have an altar. ,, Why should not 
this be the cherished sentiment of all Christians? If we 
have a roof over our head and a family to gather beneath 
it, why should not the family altar, and all for which that 
stands, be central in the life of the home? 

It is in the hope of making at least some slight contri¬ 
bution toward this end that this book is sent out. We have 
thought of many young married couples and that it might 
be a help to them at the very first in establishing the home 
altar. It is the wedding day at evening. A new home has 
this day been created. The two are united not alone by their 
affection for each other, but by their love to God and desire 
to serve him. It is to be a Christian home. They both have 
expected it and desired such a home. How are they to 
begin? Let there be no embarrassment, but perfect frank¬ 
ness. Let them sit down and read together, for instance, 
such a passage as John 2 :i-ii : “And there was a marriage 
at Cana of Galilee . . . and Jesus was bidden.” Then 

bowing together in prayer let them tell God how happy 
they are, how eager for his presence, how they want him 
to be a guest in their home, and ask him to bless them 


A FOREWORD 


always with his help and favor throughout the whole of 
their life journey. 

Most young people have this purpose in mind, but too 
often they put off day after day the beginning of their 
family worship until they almost lose sight of the good in¬ 
tention they had cherished. It may be that such a book as 
this, with selected Scripture lessons and many brief but care¬ 
fully chosen prayers, will prove a welcome help at the very 
beginning of the home life, as well as in later days, or on 
special occasions. It is for the same reason we have in¬ 
cluded a chapter of brief table-blessings designed to promote 
that goodly custom of “grace before meat,” so beautifully 
natural, so valuable as a mode of Christian testimony, and 
so fully commended to us by the example of our Lord Him¬ 
self. Besides, daily bread is rendered sweeter to the body 
by the wise and humble mind which recognizes how wonder¬ 
ful it is that there should be any. 

Little children also in all ranks of life should be care¬ 
fully taught to bow their heads in a momentary thankful¬ 
ness for the food provided, no matter how simple or how 
brief the words which they are taught to utter. There will 
be found therefore, in the chapter entitled “Grace Before 
Meat,” some simpler forms for children’s use; also another 
short chapter of familiar morning and evening prayers for 
little children. There is also a chapter containing closet 
prayers, not alone for those who are young but also for 
those who are older and amid the heavier cares of life; 
and one also of selected family prayers suitable for all 
occasions. 

But the main body of the book is made up of a series of 
Bible studies, or familiar comments on some verse or short 
passage of Scripture, one or more for each week of the 
year. Individuals or families kept at home from church by 

XVII 


A FOREWORD 


sickness or other inability may like to have a little home serv¬ 
ice of their own, hence each section supplies a Motto for the 
Week, a brief Prayer, Hymns and Lessons, with a short 
Meditation on a Scripture text. Even if most of the family 
expect to attend church, some may be unable. For their sakes 
among other reasons, the selection for the day may be con¬ 
sidered appropriate for use when gathered at the family altar 
on Sunday morning. For the shut in, for any who would 
welcome them for silent Sunday afternoons, or for use as 
short services at summering places, or in hotel parlors, in 
vicinities where there may be no regular church service, they 
may be found appropriate and useful. 

Not the least of their value may be to my brethren in 
the ministry to whom the topics may prove suggestive for 
devotional meetings or regular pulpit preparation, especi¬ 
ally in view of the fact that there are additional selections 
for the great seasons of the church year,—New Year Sun¬ 
day, Easter, Children’s Day, Independence Day, Labor Sun¬ 
day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas, etc. 

The book is sent forth with the earnest prayer that it 
may prove a means of grace to all into whose hands it may 
come, and so that it may aid in some degree at least toward 
the bringing in of the Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour 
Jesus Christ. 


G. B. F. H. 


HOW TO HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR 


Motto For the Week: “Wisdom is the principal thing, 
therefore get wisdom” Prov. 4:9. 

Hymn: “While with ceaseless course the sun” —John 
Newton. 

Scripture: Proverbs 3:13-35. 

Meditation: HOW TO HAVE A HAPPY NEW 
YEAR. 

Text: “Happy is the man that hndeth wisdom.” Prov. 
3:i3 

“Happy New Year!” This is the New Year wish we 
make for our friends. It is no less the New Year wish we 
cherish for ourselves. It is a good wish to make, and a 
good wish to cherish; but trying to bring its fulfillment in 
others’ lives and in our own life is better than the mere 
wishing. 

There are wrong sources of supposed happiness to which 
people are liable to resort. 

I. If we would be happy this year we must not follow 
the will o’ the wisps of sinful indulgence. There are some 
common preventives of happiness, such as undue sensitive¬ 
ness, egotism, borrowing trouble—these and such as these— 
which we must avoid during the coming twelve months if 
we would have the year prove a happy one. 

But there are some positive ways in which happiness 
can be won. It is well not to be overcome of evil, but the 
Bible tells us plainly that the best way to accomplish that 

19 


20 


HOW TO HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR 


result is the strategic way, the indirect way. of overcoming 
evil with good. There is a positive, straight-forward, good 
old-fashioned way of becoming happy, and that is by being 
good. “A good man shall be satisfied from himself.” “Happy 
is the man that findeth wisdom,” and that means the kind 
of wisdom of which the wise Solomon speaks in another 
place when he says, “The fear of the Lord is the begin¬ 
ning of wisdom.” If you are not happy you can become 
so by becoming a Christian, true, sincere, heart-enlisted; or 
if you are a Christian then by becoming a better Chris¬ 
tian. 

II. A second suggestion, akin to the other, is that hap¬ 
piness comes not by what we possess but by what we are. 
The secret is that of character; which is not from without, 
but within. The good man’s true self becomes his own con¬ 
tent. “A good man shall be satisfied from himself.” “The 
kingdom of God is within you,” and all the way to heaven 
thus becomes heaven begun. 

Ill Again, happiness, is won by conquest over sin. As 
sin indulged mars happiness, so sin overcome increases hap¬ 
piness. The more sin is triumphed over during the com¬ 
ing year the happier we will be. With a clear conscience, 
a pure heart, and a sense of the contest with evil well 
fought, happiness is assured. 

IV. Let us not forget that happiness is found also es¬ 
pecially in doing good to others. As Byron says: “All 
who would win joy must share it, happiness was born a 
twin.” Happiness and selfishness cannot flourish on the 
same stem. Selfish people are ever seeking and never find¬ 
ing happiness; unselfish people are finding happiness ever 
without seeking. It is to be obtained indirectly. We must 
give away in order to become rich. Unselfishness is the 
road to happiness and to Heaven. 


HOW TO HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR 21 

We have somewhere read of a certain minister who 
preached one day on “Heaven.” The next morning he met 
one of his well-to-do members who said: “Pastor, you 
preached yesterday a good sermon about heaven, but you 
omitted to tell us one thing; you did not tell us where 
heaven is, and that is the very thing I wanted to know.” 
“Well, then,” said the minister, “I will answer your ques¬ 
tion now. I have just come from the hilltop yonder. In 
that cottage is a member of our church. She is sick in bed 
with a fever. Her two children also are sick in the other 
bed. They have not a lump of coal, a stick of wood, or 
flour, or sugar, or bread. If you will go down town and 
buy ten dollars’ worth of provisions and send up to that 
woman, then go tell her that you have brought those pro¬ 
visions in the name of Christ, then ask for the Bible and 
read to her the twenty-third psalm, and then get down on 
your knees and pray,—if you don’t see heaven before you 
get through, I will pay the expenses you have been to.” The 
fact is that people who do these things are not asking 
where heaven is. They know where it is. It was said of 
an old Puritan that “heaven was in him before he was in 
heaven.” A Scotchman being asked if he ever expected to go 
to heaven, gave the quaint reply: “Why, mon, I live there.” 
When Edward Payson lay dying he said: “If I had known 
twenty-five years ago what I know now I might have 
walked in the light of the New Jerusalem all these years.” 
He had just entered the Beulah Land experience. Many 
do not enter because, like him, they think it is only to 
be obtained after death. It is the same heaven in both 
worlds. The only difference is of one degree. “Lay hold on 
eternal life.” It is something for us to get hold of now. It 
is a thing of the future, but it is a thing of the present too; 
and even the part of it which is future can be so realized 
and grasped by faith as to be actually enjoyed while we are 


22 


HOW TO HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR 


here. Pardon, peace, rest of soul, assurance of hope, 
abounding joy, and grace beyond measure, these and such 
as these are the blessings that come to the man who 
has this inner heaven in his heart. “The kingdom of God 
is within you.” All the way to heaven may be heaven 
begun. 

Prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father, our years are in thy 
hand, and we are so glad we can call thee Father, that we 
may come to thee with all our joys and all our sorrows. 
Make us, we pray thee, more worthy to be called thy chil¬ 
dren. May we not be content with the comforts of this 
world only, but may we lean on thy loving breast the com¬ 
ing year; and let the new year be the best we have ever 
known, we pray thee. For Jesus' sake. Amen. 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


A DAILY RATE FOR EVERY DAY 


Motto for the Week: “As thy days so shall thy strength 
be” Deut. 33:25. 

Hymn: “Wait my soul upon the Lord ”—William F. 
Lloyd. 

Scripture: Psalm 46:1-11. 

Meditation: A DAILY RATE FOR EVERY DAY . 

Text: “A daily rate for every day” 2 Kings 25:30. 

There is a very beautiful and meaningful expression 
which occurs in the account of the kindness shown by the 
king of Babylon to Jehoiachin. Though a captive “he 
spake kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of 
the kings that were with him in Babylon; and changed his 
prison garments; and he did eat bread continually before 
him all the days of his life. And his allowance was a con¬ 
tinual allowance given him of the king, a daily rate for 
every day all the days of his life. ,, 

I. “A daily rate for every day ” This thought is di¬ 
rectly applicable to God's ways of dealing with us. For one 
thing it rebukes in us the folly of trying to live on yester¬ 
day's grace. It is as wise to talk of gaining physical 
strength and support for to-day on the food we received 
yesterday, or last week, as to talk of building up and 
strengthening the soul on the blessings and grace received 
in the past. If a soul would be active, alive and strong 
its divine food, like the manna from heaven given the 
children of Israel, must be fresh from the sky each day. 

23 


24 


A DAILY RATE FOR EVERYDAY 


The spiritual food given and received must be “a daily 
rate for each day.” Toplady has well said in speaking of 
living to-day’s life on yesterday’s grace: “The act of breath¬ 
ing which I performed yesterday will not keep me alive 
to-day; I must continue to breathe afresh every moment, 
or animal life ceases. In like manner yesterday’s grace and 
spiritual strength must be renewed, and the Holy Spirit 
must continue to breathe on my soul from moment to mom¬ 
ent in order to my enjoying the consolations, and to my 
working the works, of God.” 

II. This thought of “a daily rate for every day,” also 
reveals to us the privilege of living one day at a time. Like 
with the old pendulum in the fable, despair comes to many 
a heart when life is viewed in the aggregate. But this is 
not the way to view life. It does not come to us all in 
one piece. We do not get it even in years or months, but 
in days,—day by day, one day at a time. We have only 
one day’s duties or trials or cares in a day, and grace is 
promised “a daily rate for every day”; why then should we 
not live the life of trust, of simple, humble dependence on 
God, without thought or worry? 

III. This thought of “a daily rate for every day” also 
rebukes in us the sin of borrowing trouble. Why borrow 
trouble for any to-morrow when to-morrow is sure to have 
its measure of grace? With too many Christians it is just 
fret, fret, fret all the time; not over actual but anticipated 
troubles—worrying over imaginary evils. As Tupper says: 
“It is evils that never happen that have mostly made men 
miserable.” But why should we worry when we have 
such a promise as this—“A daily rate for every day” ? That 
means Monday’s grace for Monday, Tuesday’s grace for 
Tuesday, and so on. 

IV. Once more, this thought of “a daily rate for every 
day” is suited to stimulate and encourage us in all Chris- 


A DAILY RATE FOR EVERY DAY 


25 


tian effort. Some may be only beginning the Christian 
life. Is this not a blessed assurance with which to start 
out? What more could you ask? You are to have grace 
and strength “a daily rate for every day.” But this is not 
alone an encouragement for beginners. Fellow pilgrims, 
climbing the rough and rugged steeps of life, weak or 
strong, young or old, in sunshine or in shade, whate/er 
your circumstances or need, take heart, take hope, take cour¬ 
age! “The Lord God omnipotent reigneth!” Whatever 
your burdens, whatever your duties, whatever your suffer¬ 
ings or your labors, this promise is yours, and yours foi 
all time—“A daily rate for every day,”—“As thy days so 
shall thy strength be.” 

Prayer: “Let Thy love so warm our souls, O Lord, 
that we may gladly surrender ourselves with all we are and 
have unto thee. Let thy love fall as fire from heaven 
upon the altar of our hearts; teach us to guard it heedfully 
by continual devotion and quietness of mind, and to cher¬ 
ish with anxious care every spark of its holy flame, with 
which thy good Spirit would quicken us, so that neither 
height, nor depth, things present nor things to come, may 
ever separate us therefrom. Strengthen thou our souls; 
awaken us from the deathly sleep which holds us captive; 
animate our cold hearts with thy warmth and tenderness, 
that we may no more live as in a dream, but walk before 
thee as pilgrims in earnest to reach their home. And 
grant us all at last to meet with thy holy saints before 
thy throne, and there rejoice in thy love for ever and ever 
through Christ, our Lord.—Amen.” 

Offer the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


THE UPLIFTED FACE 


Motto for the Week: “I will lift up mine eyes unto the 
hills, from whence cometh my help/’ Ps 121 :i. 

Hymn: “Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve /'— 
Philip Doddridge. 

Scripture: Joshua 1 :i-i8. 

Meditation: THE UPLIFTED FACE. 

Text: “Then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot 
Job 11:15. 

This phrase is extremely beautiful as a figure of speech, 
and at the same time very suggestive as a fact in religious 
experience. It expresses the attitude of a soul at peace 
with God according to the provisions and terms of the Gos¬ 
pel. It suggests at least five things. 

I. First, confidence. Confidence is involved. For a 
man without peace and confidence will hang his head with 
guilt and shame, not lift it up without spot. It would be 
well for us to cultivate more the grace of the uplifted face, 
the look of trust and confidence in our heavenly Father. 
He is good; his attitude toward us in loving; his acts are 
wise. Let us lift up our faces toward him without spot, 
without any dark frown of distrust or doubt. 

II. Again, in the uplifted face fellowship is involved. 
We dare to look steadily, with the uplifted face, upon those 
we know and love, and whom we are sure know and love 
us. “Then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot,” when 
you have fellowship with God; not alone when you have 

36 


THE UPLIFTED PACE 


27 


confidence in him, but when you know him, are on terms 
of intimacy with him. 

III. Futhermore, a degree of happiness and cheer is 
involved in the face uplift without spot. The uplifted face 
implies a degree of happiness, and increasing happiness 
results from the uplifted face. Do we realize the fact 
that there is help and cheer in the state of looking up? If 
you are sad, or in sorrow, or burdened, try looking up. Look 
up into the sky. See the hill-tops, the fleecy clouds, and 
the blue heaven beyond. The fact is we all look down too 
much. We look down when we are at our work, when 
we are thinking, when we are troubled, when we are 
ashamed, when we are sorrowful. Looking down is us¬ 
ually the sign of some sort of burden being on the heart 
or mind. Not that it is wrong to look down. Not that we 
should pay less attention to work or duty. But we must 
learn also to look up. We must learn the soul-expand¬ 
ing look. We must have the cheering change of the upward 
look, also the resting change as one lifts his eyes occa¬ 
sionally from the book he is studying. We must not live 
in a despairing or desponding attitude. The upward look 
brings freedom and cheer and hope. Look up. Lift up 
your eyes without spot and you will see the hills and the 
trees and the stars and the blue heavens beyond. This 
will calm you and steady you and comfort you. 

A woman who had lost her first born and only child 
fell into a sort of settled state of sorrow and melancholy. 
She was a Christian, but she seemed to find it impossible to 
be comforted. A wise friend told her to look up, to try 
looking up into the sky often every day. She testified that 
it broke the spell of her melancholy, and that it had proven 
an immense help and comfort to her. 


28 


THE UPLIFTED FACS 


Let us lift our eyes and our hearts with them to 
larger and nobler things, to joyous things. David in exile 
once exclaimed, “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, 
from whence cometh my help.” What David saw was the 
temple and the prayers that ascended from it, the sacrifi¬ 
ces there offered, with the smoke ascending to heaven. He 
heard the music of the temple choir. He became con¬ 
scious of the truths there uttered, and they became real and 
precious in his memory. Yes, he came into fellowship with 
God himself. This is the advantage of the upward look. 
It brings us both consciousness of God and into fellowship 
with him. David was an exile, but by the upward look 
he saw these things, heard them, realized them. 

IV. Fourthly, purity also is hinted at here. The face 
without spot is clean and pure. The spots make it unclean 
and in need of cleansing. “Lift up thy face without spot.” 
Cleanse your heart, your mind, your thoughts—cultivate 
purity that you may be able to lift up the face toward 
God. 

A young Christian woman, speaking of her mother, said 
to the writer recently in conversation: “Mother always 
believes in people who look her straight in the face.” We 
have long given a growing son the advice: “Whenever 
you speak to people look them straight in the face.” There 
is honesty and purity implied in the face uplifted without 
spot. It is both a sign of honesty, and it is conducive to 
increasing honesty and purity of heart and motive. Let 
us learn to lift up our faces toward God, saying “Search 
me, O God, and know my thoughts, try me and know my 
heart, and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead 
me in the way everlasting.” 

V. Lastly, beauty is also implied in this phrase. The 
face that is covered with spots and stains has its beauty 
marred, and perhaps really destroyed. O that we may be 


THE UPLIFTED FACE 


2© 


able to lift up our faces to God in the beauty of holiness. 
Holiness gives clear views of sin, and leads men personally 
to abstain from all appearance of evil and to teach others 
to do so. The holy man’s skies are clear, his sun shines 
steadily, his eyes are on the throne, and he moves forward 
with unspeakable peace, and with a certainty of victory, 
for he sees God and cannot doubt. Holiness transforms 
and transfigures men; it brightens the eye, quickens the 
step, exalts the life, makes faith perfect, renders vocal the 
silent tongue, cures heart-ache, banishes bitterness, 
and satisfies the soul with all good things. Holiness is 
heaven on earth, and holy men and women are its minis¬ 
tering spirits, its earthly angels. Let us seek this beauty— 
the beauty of holiness. Let us strive to be able to lift up 
the face without spot. Let us try to realize the transform¬ 
ing results of the uplifted face. The change is “from glory 
to glory,” from one degree of spiritual beauty to a higher. 
It is a gradual growth. A Christian is sure to grow lovely 
by just loving,—by just going on in love for Christ. It has 
been fabled from old times that the graceful swan was 
changed from a most ugly bird into its present beauty, 
merely because of its constancy to its mate. But, oh, how 
Christian fact is sure to outrun classic fable! The soul 
grows wondrously lovely just by loving, by pouring out its 
faithful affection; and all the more so when the object of 
its affection is the Lord Jesus Christ, the One altogether 
lovely. We behold his face, Jesus’ face, as in a glass, and 
are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even 
as by the Spirit of the Lord. 

Prayer: “Our heavenly Father and Father of our 
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, we worship thee, for thou 
art worthy of the faith of our minds, the love of our hearts 
and the service of our lives. Though thou art great and the 


30 


THE UPLIFTED FACE 


whole earth is full of thy glory, yet thy greatness doth not 
separate thee from us. Thou art nigh us, even in our hearts, 
and in thee we live and move and have our being. May we 
turn this intimacy of thy life with ours into conscious fel¬ 
lowship in which we shall know thee and walk in the light of 
thy face. Disclose to us thy presence in the world, may 
we see thy thoughts written large in nature, trace thy steps 
in providence, and especially may we see wondrous things 
in thy Word. So may the world become our Father's house, 
in which we shall rest and serve and pray and fear no evil. 
May our task be our teacher, and our work our worship. 
Amidst the temptations and trials of life, its work and 
wear and worry, grant us purity and patience and peace. 
May gentleness and helpfulness and courtesy brighten and 
beautify all our social relations. Keep us from discour¬ 
agement and complaint, and may we fight the good fight 
bravely and keep the faith until we win and wear the crown. 
And this we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.” 

Offer the Lord’s Prayer together. 


CALLING AND CONDUCT 


Motto for the Week: “Ye shall be witnesses unto me” 
Acts i :8. 

Hymn: “So let our lips and lives express ”—Isaac 
Watts. 

Scripture: Col. 3:1-25. 

Meditation: CALLING AND CONDUCT. 

Text: “I, therefore , the prisoner of the Lord beseech 
you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are 
called” Eph. 4:1. 

When Paul spake of himself as a prisoner of the Lord 
he means that he was in confinement for the cause of the 
Loid, or regarded himself as having been made a prisoner 
because the Lord had so willed or permitted or ordered it. 
He did not feel particularly that he was the prisoner of 
Nero, but only a prisoner under Nero for some good pur¬ 
pose or will of the Lord. From his prison in Rome he 
sent a loving message to the Ephesian Christians. It was a 
charge that they should walk worthy of the vocation where¬ 
with they were called. The word walk is often used in the 
Bible to denote life and conduct. The word vocation means a 
call or an invitation. Hence it means that divine invitation or 
calling by which Christians are introduced into the privi¬ 
leges of the gospel. The exhortation as it comes on to us 
is definitely one that Christians should walk as becomes 
their Christian profession, that in view of our calling we 
should take care as to our conduct. 

31 


32 


CALLING AND CONDUCT 


I. Let us notice, first, the nature of our calling. It 
is a calling of God. This is true because it is God Him¬ 
self who calls us, out of darkness into light, out of the king¬ 
dom of Satan unto the kingdom of His dear Son. This 
is a “work of God’s Spirit, whereby convincing us of our 
sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge 
of Christ, and renewing our wills, he doth persuade and 
enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, as he is freely offered 
to us in the gospel.” This calling or vocation is therefore 
through the agency of the Holy Spirit, and consists in influ¬ 
encing the mind to turn to God and enter into his kingdom. 

It is a high calling. Phil. 3:14. That is, it is an hon¬ 
orable calling, one which places honor upon us. It is a 
calling to serve a high and honorable Master. It is a high 
calling also because the price attached to it is the greatest 
possible one, eternal life. 

It is a holy calling. 2 Tim. 1 :g. This is true, for one 
thing, because the nature and purpose of it is holiness,— 
holiness in the highest possible measure on earth and 
perfect holiness in heaven at last. In Hebrews, 3rd chap¬ 
ter and first verse, it is spoken of as a heavenly calling. 
It is well called such as it comes from heaven and draws 
us to heaven. 

It is a profitable calling. One of the things we ought to 
get fixed firmly in mind is that it pays to be a Christian. 
It is not true that Satan treats his followers better than 
Christ does his. Satan is not the author of our good things 
and Christ of our evil things. The best things for this life 
and for the life that is to come are given his followers 
by Christ. There is no plainer statement in all God’s Word 
than the one which says, “Godliness is profitable unto all 
things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that 
which is to come.” We have a rich Master, one who pays 
his servants well. The Christian calling is, indeed a pro- 


CALLING AND CONDUCT 


33 


fitable calling. This would become plain were we to study 
more deeply the things to which we are called. We are 
called, for example, to the knowledge of God. 2 Peter 1: 
2, to the faith of Christ, 1 Cor. 1 :g, Gal. 2:6, to holiness 
of life, 1 Thess. 4: 8, Rom. 7:1, to peace with God, peace 
with our own consciences, peace with one another, and 
crowning all, eternal life, 1 Peter 3:9, 1 Thess. 2:12. 

II. Let us notice, secondly, the obligations of our cal¬ 
ling “That ye walk worthily.” Practically, Paul’s ex¬ 
hortation is this, that considering what God had done for 
them, to what a high estate and condition he had called 
them, he would that they should prove themselves good 
Christians and live up to their profession,—that they 
should walk worthily, suitably, congruously to those 
happy circumstances unto which the grace of God had 
brought them since they had been converted from heathen¬ 
ism to Christianity. The exhortation takes in the whole 
circle of Christian duties. If we exhort a man of noble 
birth or of distinguished rank in life not to do anything 
unworthy of himself, disgraceful to his family, or unbe¬ 
coming his high station, we appeal to one of the strongest 
possible motives. Paul says it is our vocation to be Chris¬ 
tians. We are called to be Christians, therefore we should 
live like Christians. We are called to God’s kingdom and 
glory. We should therefore keep his kingdom and glory 
in mind, and walk as becomes the heirs of them. 

How then are these obligations we are under in the 
Christian calling to be satisfied? 

First, by humility and gentleness. The apostle goes 
on to tell us some of the ways of walking worthy of the 
vocation wherewith we are called. We are to walk “with 
all lowliness and meekness, with long suffering, forbearing 
one another in love; endeavoring to keep the unity of the 
Spirit in the bond of peace.” By lowliness we are to un- 


34 


CALLING AND CONDUCT 


derstand humility, the opposite to pride. By meekness, he 
means that excellent disposition of the soul which makes 
men unwilling to provoke others and not easily provoked 
or offended by others. It is opposed to anger, resentment 
and peevishness. Long suffering implies a patient bear¬ 
ing of injuries without seeking revenge. Forbearing one 
another in love signifies bearing with others’ infirmities out 
of the principle of love; that is, we will not cease to love 
our fellow Christians on account of their infirmities. The 
best Christians have need to bear with one another and to 
make the best of one another. We find much in ourselves 
which it is hard to forgive ourselves; therefore we must 
not think it strange if we find in others things which re¬ 
quire some effort for us to forgive. Yet we must forgive 
them as we forgive ourselves, and for the same reasons. 
Let us not forget, too, that it is by these very things we 
are enabled to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of 
peace. The first step towards unity is humility. Without 
this there will be no meekness, no patience, no forbear¬ 
ance, and without these no unity, and without unity there 
can be no peace. Humility and meekness restore the peace 
and keep it. 

The obligations of our Christian calling are to be sat¬ 
isfied, also, by a walk that subordinates our own pleasure 
and advantage to the welfare of others. This means, for 
one thing, a walk that does not give the lie to our pro¬ 
fession, a wise and winsome walk that pays attention to 
what our influence will be over others, or how our conduct 
comports with our calling. There are many people who read 
Christians who never read the Bible. “Ye are my witnesses, 
saith the Lord.” Well has it been said that the professed 
Christian is the world’s Bible,—the only Bible the maj¬ 
ority of outsiders ever look at. They form their inpress- 
ions of Christianity, not as it is revealed in the holy Scrip- 


CALLING AND CONDUCT 


35 


tures, but as it is revealed in us. On the other hand a 
consistent Christian life is a power anywhere and every¬ 
where. The religion which keeps the speech pure and hon¬ 
est, the temper sweet and kindly, the actions considerate 
and unselfish—such a walk and conversation is a constant 
telling of the gospel story, of the real good news to men. 
“But,” as Mr. Moody once said, “a man may preach with 
the eloquence of an angel, and if he does not live what he 
preaches and act out in his home and his business what he 
professes, his testimony goes for naught, and people will 
say it is all hypocrisy, after all; it is all a sham.” 

The sin of life denial, of walking unworthy of our 
vocation, of not having our conduct consistent with our 
calling, usually comes through some indulgence which 
shows a low state of religion in the heart and a special 
lack of loyalty and devotion. Some Christians seem to 
wish to walk as near the line between right and wrong as 
ever they can just as they do not go clear over to the 
wrong side. Like some trees, they stand on the right side 
of the fence, but they lean a little over, and when they fall 
they are sure to fall the wrong way. Such Christians 
not only bear false witness against Christ to the world but 
they show a special lack of fidelity and loyal devotion. 
God has plainly told us that he wants his people to live so 
that men can “discern between the righteous and the wicked, 
between him that serveth God and him that serveth him 
not.” God expects his people to live so you will know the 
difference. Now, if Christians associate in the ways of the 
worldly, if they engage in the pleasures of the worldly, 
if they indulge in the sins of the worldly, how are you 
going to know the difference, how shall you discern be¬ 
tween? God intends that there shall be a difference and 
that men shall be able to see the difference. 


36 


CALLING AND CONDUCT 


Prayer: “Oh our God, hear us, as once again we 
who love thee kneel to pray. The only offering we can 
bring is the adoration of our hearts. They are only 
human hearts, but Christ dwells in them. We have cho¬ 
sen him as our Redeemer and Friend. We can not com¬ 
prehend the glory of our Guest, but we in a little realize 
his love. Make us worthy of it, we beseech thee. 

“We mean to serve thee, our Father. Not always do we 
know how rightly to do what thou wouldest have us, but as 
far as we can learn from thy word, we do desire to help 
bring the Christ to his sovereignty in this world. Help us 
to realize our own desire. Keep us within the limits 
of the great law, Thou shalt love.’ That is our purpose, 
oh our God. Let us not fail of it, we beseech thee, and for¬ 
give us, oh Lord, forgive us our sins, for Christ’s sake 
Amen.” 

Repeat the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


RELIGION IN THE HOME 


Motto for the Week: “He saith unlo him, Feed my 
lambs.” John 21115. 

Hymn: “Saviour like a shepherd lead us.” —Anon. 

Scripture: Deut. 6:1-25. 

Meditation: RELIGION IN THE HOME. 

Text: “A devout man and one that feared God with 
all his house.” —Acts 10:2. 

The apostles had been preaching to the Jews only God 
wanted the Gentiles also reached. He selected Cornelius 
as a non-Jew, through whose conversion he would show his 
purpose to the outside world, and Peter as the one from 
whose lips the message of grace for all men should first 
proceed. 

But leaving this larger theme, we wish to gather some 
lessons from the reference to the home religion of Cor¬ 
nelius, this devout Gentile. The record is that he was a 
“devout man and feared God with all his house.” In 
other words, he not only feared God himself, but his 
whole house was taught to fear him. His was a religious 
home. 

I. The religion of the family is the most primitive and 
ideal. The family is a radical and fundamental organiza¬ 
tion and agency in human society. Church and State are 
dependent upon it for their existence, and for whatever 
makes them beneficial to the world. It is the original 
source of authority, government, morality and religion. 

37 


38 


RELIGION IN THE HOME 


There the Church was organized. There human govern¬ 
ment was instituted. There marriage was divinely sol¬ 
emnized. Without family ties, famhy government and dis¬ 
cipline, family virtue and piety, the Church could not exist, 
and society would quickly relapse into anarchy and barbar¬ 
ism and fall to pieces. Is it any wonder, then, that God 
guards the family sanctity and life with such jealous care 
and lays upon marital and parental relations such solemn 
sanctions and obligations? Is it any wonder, either, that 
good people mourn at any attack upon family life or 
are alarmed when seeing any sign of looseness or decay in 
family religion? 

II. Family religion has been peculiarly approved and 
blessed of God. 

It is a remarkable fact that most men eminent in life 
had in childhood a religious home. Bishop Haven, after 
careful investigation, says, “Three-fourths of the most 
prominent scientists, authors, and merchants are not more 
than two generations removed from the manse. They are 
either sons or grandsons of ministers.” A French author has 
collected similiar statistics. If you were to have read to 
you a list of the sons of clergymen who have attained 
honorable distinction you would be surprised to find how 
near to religious homes are the eminent men of the modern 
world. There are three good reasons why this is so; one 
is that such homes have the blessing of God upon them, an¬ 
other is that the atmosphere of a religious home is best 
suited for the formation of character, a third is that the at¬ 
mosphere of a religious home is best suited to the highest 
development of the mind. And these three things are the 
great sources of success in the world. 

The influence of a religious home in childhood will 
almost surely assert itself, in some way, in after years. 
No matter how wayward some of the children may be, 


30 


/ 

RELIGION IN THE HOME 

they can never quite forget the old home wherein was a 
praying father and mother. /The morning prayer and ev¬ 
ening hymn linger in the halls of memory, and are sure to 
bring forth good results in the life. 

III. It may take courage to have religion in the home. 
It usually does. 

Ii has been told of the late Judge McLean, of Ohio, 
that he was converted when on a visit away from home. 
The evening of his return he told his wife and family at the 
supper table of the change he had experienced, and at 
the close suggested that they go into the next room and 
have family worship. In that room were a number of 
lawyers waiting to consult the judge. The wife offered 
their presence as an objection, and suggested that they go 
to a more retired part of the house. “No,” said the 
Judge, “the Lord has been crowded out of every part of 
my house for years, and now he shall have the best room 
we have; besides there are some lawyers who would not 
be injured by attending prayers.” He went into the par- 
ior, told the lawyers he had been converted, that he was 
going to have family prayers, and would be glad to have 
them remain, but if they desired not to do so, they would 
be excused. They all remained, and the strong stand for 
Christ did the Judge good, his family good and the lawyers 
good. It was a good beginning of a life of out-and-out 
service for Christ. It took courage for the Judge to do 
what he did—as much courage as for many a soldier in 
battle to walk right up to the mouths of hotly firing can¬ 
non. 

We heard the late Dr. John G. Paton, veteran mission¬ 
ary to the New Hebrides, say that among the thousands of 
Christian homes among those converted cannibals there is 
not one that does not have daily family prayers. They put to 


40 RELIGION IN THE HOME 

shame many much more highly favored church members 
in this country. 

IV. To secure religion in the home, parents should not 
hesitate to use a good degree of authority in their house¬ 
holds. 

A boy did not want to go to church, but the Christian 
father kindly but firmly insisted that he should. The father 
said: “As long as my boy sits at my table he must sit 
in my pew.” As long as our children are at home with us 
we should use the authority God gives us to guide them in 
the matter of their religious training. 

In every community there are throngs of children who 
are suffering from lack of this parental care and duty of 
authority. It they feel like going to church or Sunday- 
school they go; if not, they stay at home, or roam the 
fields, or stray in the streets. No parental authority is 
used to secure their religious training, either in the home or 
outside of it. This neglect is a sin for which the parents 
must answer at the bar of God. It is one from which they 
are likely to reap the bitterest results both here and hereaf¬ 
ter. 

The plea we would make is a very earnest one for more 
religion in the home, and for more true Christian homes. 
Some writer has said, “France builds theatres and palaces, 
Italy builds churches and convents, but America builds 
homes.” The civilization of these countries attests the truth 
of the remark. Our prayer is that our beloved America may 
be known throughout the world, becoming truly worthy of 
such high praise, as the land of Christian homes,. Let each 
family do its part to bring about so desirable a condition 
and the consummation so devoutly to be desired will not be 
long delayed. 

Prayer: “Our Father, we thank Thee for our home 
on earth, and for the home that awaits us in heaven. Keep 


RELIGION IN THE HOME 


4i 


our home this day, and accept our thanks for the blessings 
that fill it. Restrain us from all unkindness toward each 
other and toward any of our fellows, and make us thought¬ 
ful, considerate and Christlike. Bless the homeless and the 
sad, and make us mindful of their need. Send us forth to 
do thy will, in the name of Jesus our Lcrd, and bring us 
at last to the home above.'’ 

Unite in oifering the Lord’s Prayer. 


BUILDING SKYWARD 


Motto for the Week: “Built upon the foundation of the 
apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief 
corner stone/' Eph. 2:20. 

Hymn: “How firm a foundation/' —Anon. 

Scripture: Matt. 7:15-29. 

Meditation: BUILDING SKYWARD. 

Text: “For, See, saith he, that thou make all things 
according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount/' 
Heb. 8:5. 

Of late years, perhaps because of the value of the land, 
many buildings are occupying the air, rather than the 
ground. Immense structures are being piled skyward in the 
great cities of our country. But there are regions where 
such buildings will never be attempted, for the frequent 
earthquakes in those parts would make them unsafe. But 
whatever we may think of those high buildings let us not 
forget that heavenward is the direction in which every man 
should build himself. And this is the direction in which 
he may build, no matter what country or clime he may 
dwell in. There is no earthquake that can shake down a 
character whose foundation is Christ and whose direction 
is heavenward. 

The building of character is the most important busi¬ 
ness of life. It matters little whether we are rich or poor 
in this world’s goods. It matters little what of material 
things we leave behind us. What really matters is what 

4 * 


BUILDING SKYWARD 


43 


we build into our being; what sort of an edifice we make 
out of our own selves. 

I. The first thing of importance is the pattern or 
plan we follow. When Moses was on the mount of God 
he saw a plan of the tabernacle. God revealed to him 
just how he would have it built and ornamented and fur¬ 
nished. And repeatedly afterwards God charged him, “See 
that thou make it in all things after the pattern shewed 
to thee in the mount/' There are mountain-top experi¬ 
ences which we all have, times of spiritual exaltation, when 
God shows us as in a vision how he would have us build 
our lives. He sets before us high ideals. He reveals to us the 
beauty of holiness. He makes love and purity and gentle¬ 
ness and serviceableness seem desirable to us. Sometimes 
this pattern is revealed to us as we study God’s word. As 
we read the commandments, as we learn the beatitudes, as 
we come to know the life and teachings of Christ and his 
apostles, we are made to realize more and more that God 
is showing to us the pattern for our life, not only in its 
grand outlines, but in the more delicate lines of its possi¬ 
ble beauty and ornamentation. You have such a pattern 
before you, have you not? You know what sort of a life¬ 
building you would like to erect, do you not? You have 
been on the mountain. God has spoken to you. God has 
opened the eyes of your spiritual vision. Surely you wish 
to build heavenward. But desire alone will not erect the 
temple of a noble character. It will not put up a building 
which an earthquake cannot shake down. A good plan is 
good; but something more is necessary. 

II. Next after the plan must come the foundation lay¬ 
ing. 

The building that is going to reach very far skyward 
must have a good foundation. We may as well know it 
first as last, there is but one sure foundation upon which a 


44 


BUILDING SKYWARD 


life-building can be erected; and that foundation is Christ. 
‘‘Behold, I lay in Zion a foundation stone, a tried stone, 
a precious corner stone, a sure foundation ” “Other foun¬ 
dation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Christ 
Jesus.” A character must be built for storms. Houses 
are built out of doors. They stand in exposed places. The 
rains must beat upon them. The winds must blow. The 
floods must come. Houses must be able to stand stress. 
Characters are built for out-of-doors also. Men must stand 
storms. Storms of temptation are sure to sweep over them. 
Floods of evil will certainly flow against them. If men 
are going to stand; then they must be built on the Rock. 

III. A house is not finished that has a good plan and 
a sure foundation. There must be labor expended upon 
it, faithful patient building unto the end. 

“Souls are built as temples are,— 

Here a carving rich and quaint, 

There the image of a saint; 

Here a deep-toned pane to tell 
Sacred truth or miracle. 

Every little helps the much; 

Every cheerful, careless touch 
Adds a charm or leaves a scar.” 

No magnificent building ever grew of itself. Some 
one had to work upon it. Stone by stone it rose, each block 
being laid in its place by toil and effort. No beautiful char¬ 
acter ever grew of itself. Characters are built as temples are. 
That friend you admire so much did not dream himself into 
goodness,—into truth and love and purity. A boy was asked, 
"Is your father a Christian?” His answer was, “Yes, he is 
but he is not working much at it lately.” The child evidently 
did not understand the question; he thought reference 
was made to his father’s trade or business. But one thing 
is sure, no man builds skyward, no man erects a noble edi- 


BUILDING SKYWARD 


45 


fice of character, without working at it. Choose the best 
materials. Be watchful as to your companionships. Be 
careful what pictures you see, what books you read, what 
pleasures you indulge, what habits you form, what business 
you pursue; for out of such materials as these your life¬ 
building is being erected. 

“Build it well, whate’er you do; 

Build it straight, and strong, and true; 

Build it clear, and high, and broad; 

Build it for the eye of God.” 

Prayer: “We beseech thee, O God, to save us from our 
empty profession and mere lip service in the Christian life. 
We thank thee for the assurance that Jesus Christ is indeed 
the way, the truth and the life. Help us to accept him 
sincerely, to trust him fully and to serve him faithfully. 
Thus may our lives be strong and calm, unshaken by life’s 
tempests, unmoved by the waves of loss and sorrow. Built 
upon the eternal rock, may we be a refuge and a help for 
others in distress. Grant that the evidence of Christ’s power 
to save may be so manifested in us that we may be his 
witnesses continually, and everywhere may men be persua¬ 
ded that in him alone can true security and perfect peace 
be found: We ask through Christ, our Lord. Amen ’ 
Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


FORGETTING DISCIPLES 


Motto for the Week: “I will remember the years of the 
right hand of the Most High ” Psalm 77:10. 

Hymn: “Jesus, Thy boundless love to me ”—Paul Ger- 
hardt. 

Scripture: Psalm 103:1-22. 

Meditation: FORGETTING DISCIPLES. 

Text: “Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread ” 
Mark 8:14. 

How often the familiar words of the Bible take on a 
new light as we come to them in varying moods. One 
time we find one sentence fixing our attention, at another 
time another. The Book is a great store-house from which, 
whether glad or grieved, whether perplexed or filled with 
the spirit of rejoicing, we can find what we want. Then, 
too, it is also full of quaint asides which are rich in mean¬ 
ing as one meditates on them, and little touches of human 
nature that bring its people into kinship with us. Such a 
brief sentence is a reference to the disciples as they were 
crossing to the other side of the Lake of Galilee with Jesus, 
after the miracle of the feeding of the hungry four thou¬ 
sand. '‘They had forgotten to take bread,” it is said, in 
explanation of their misgivings of heart, when Christ, know¬ 
ing their likelihood, at this period of his popularity, of being 
led into the desire for political power warned them against 
the influence of the Pharisees. “Beware of their leaven” 
—their subtle, insidious power, was his word, and these 

4 6 


FORGETTING DISCIPLES 


47 


“slow of heart” turned to each other with self-accusations. 
“We forgot to bring bread,” was their self-condemning 
thought. “It is that of which our Master is speaking.” 

“O men of old,” exclaims one, “we are at one with 
you. We understand and sympathize with you. We, too, 
live among the literalities so much that it is hard for us 
to rise to spiritual conceptions and interpretations. When 
the Holy Spirit has some truth to reveal to us we only half 
listen and dimly comprehend. We catch enough to know 
that somewhere we are lacking, and we turn with quick 
thought to some outer duty in which we have failed, some 
mint, or anise, or cummin, which we have forgotten to tithe, 
and begin to condemn ourselves. We lose entirely the 
deep inner meaning of His word and go blundering on our 
way.” 

The disciples’ confession of shortcoming gives us a 
fellow-feeling. We, too, “forget” so many things which are 
needful. We are forgetting disciples. How prone we are 
to forget! 

I. We forget to take bread. We do not now refer to 
the bread that feeds the body—for this it was that the dis¬ 
ciples forgot to bring—but the bread that feeds the soul. 
How sadly true it is that we are forgetting disciples in tills 
respect. Did you read your Bible before you started out 
this morning? “No,” you say, “I forgot it.” You forget 
it often, do you not? You forgot it before you retired last 
night. How long, indeed, is it since you sat down to a 
real good meal of Bible promises, Bible exhortations, Bible 
food? How long? “Now the disciples had forgotten to 
take bread.” You never meant to neglect the Bible so long. 
But you are a forgetting disciple. But we must not “for¬ 
get to take bread” if we wish to grow into strong, health¬ 
ful Christians. Bible-fed Christians are not weaklings. 
Starved Christians are. Stir yourself; arouse your memory; 


48 


FORGETTING DISCIPLES 


engage the healthful influence of habit, and cease to be a 
forgetting Christian in the matter of taking bread. Do not 
forget to take the life-giving, heart-strengthening, soul¬ 
saving bread of the Word. 

II. We forget to take bread—the nourishing bread of 
prayer. “Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread/’ 
Forgetting disciples! Disciples, professed followers of 
Christ, how many of you have forgotten to take your 
proper allowance of the nourishing bread, the soul-food 
of prayer? You forgot to read the Bible this morning! 
You forgot to pray! Did you pray last night before you 
xetired? No, you forgot it. Have you prayed at all dur¬ 
ing the past week? No, you forgot it. You are aston¬ 
ished to think you did. You begin now to reproach your¬ 
self. Indeed, you begin to realize that it is a long time 
since you really prayed. You have beat your knees for a 
few moment^ sometimes morning or evening, or you dreamed 
you were praying as you sleepily rolled into bed at late 
evenings. But have you taken bread? Have you prayed? 
Have you communed with God, sought and obtained 
strength from Him, have you really prayed ? But we must 
not “forget to take bread”—the nourishing soul-food of 
prayer, if we wish to grow strong as Christians. Re¬ 
awaken the desire to pray. Re-establish habits of prayer 
Bring yourself to feel anew the need of prayer. Cease to 
be a forgetting Christian and seek regularly the soul-food 
of prayer. 

III. We forget to take bread—the soul-strengthening 
food of the Lord’s Supper. The spiritual life is much like 
a watch—very liable to run down. It is easy to forget. 
This is one of the reasons, we believe, why God has given 
us the sanctuary, and sanctuary privileges, and has called 
us to consider one another to provoke to love and to good 
works, and to not forsake the assembling of ourselves to- 


FORGETTING DISCIPLES 


49 


gether, as the manner of some is. It was for the same rea¬ 
son Christ gave us the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper— 
because he knew how liable we are even to forget Him: 
and it was for this reason he said, “This do in remembrance 
of me.” It is as when a dying friend gives one a keepsake, 
a ring, or a bracelet, or some token, and says: “Every 
time you look upon this you will think of me.” It was 
for the same reason Christ left this memorial of himself— 
in order to be remembered, in order not to be forgotten, in 
order to produce in us the blessing of oft-recurring spiritual 
reminder. But have you forgotten to take bread? Have 
you forgotten to take the soul-nourishing food of the sac¬ 
rament of the Lord’s Supper? How long is it since you 
have been to the Lord’s table? 

IV. We have many other shortcomings due to forget¬ 
fulness which give us a fellow-feeling with the disciples 
who were in that boat with Christ. We forget many things 
that are needful. We might have gone a little out of the way 
to do a kindly act. We might have spoken more sympa¬ 
thetically. We might have listened more patiently. We 
might go through the world with our eyes and hearts open, 
but persistently we do not. When the opportunity is past 
it flashes across our minds in an instant what we might 
have done. But we may take heart of hope from these 
very blundering disciples. Dull and blundering as they 
were—so like ourselves—they came in time to merge them¬ 
selves so completely in Christ that their work was grandly 
done. 

Prayer: “O God, we believe in thee, do thou strengthen 
our belief. We hope in thee, do thou confirm our hope. 
We love thee, do thou vouchsafe to redouble our love. We 
adore thee as our first principle; we desire thee as our last 
end; we thank thee as our punctual benefactor; we call upon 


50 


FORGETTING DISCIPLES 


thee as our supreme defender. O God, be pleased to guide 
us by thy wisdom, rule us by thy justice, comfort Ub by 
thy mercy and keep us by thy power. We ask in the name 
of Christ, our Lord. Amen. 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


SOLITARY PLACES IN LIFE 


Motto for the Week: “Touched with the feeling of 
our infirmities” Heb. 4:15. 

Hymn: “O Holy Saviour, Friend unseen.” —Charlotte 
Elliott. 

Scripture: Heb. 4:14-16; 5:1-14. 

Meditation: SOLITARY PLACES IN LIFE. 

Text: “And he went a little further.” Mate. 26:39. 

It is said of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane that 
“he went a little further,” to endure the agony he had to 
bear, apart from his disciples. They could not follow 
him in person or in fact all the way. Their sympathy was 
sweet and helpful. In presence they could go with him a 
a certain distance. But when it came to the supreme mea¬ 
sure of the anguish of the hour no human heart could help. 
He must be alone with God. 

Just so are there times in our lives when all human help 
fails to help. However loving and willing to render aid our 
friends may be, and however responsive to them and un¬ 
willing to separate ourselves from them we may be, yet 
there must come a place of division, a point from which, 
with all our thoughts and longings and heart-needs, we must 
“go a little further.” Companionship must stop short of 
the depths of our Gethsemane. Christ “went a little fur¬ 
ther” and was alone with God. So must we go into some 
of the solitary places of life, the heart and the flesh cry¬ 
ing out for the living God, and with no one but God able 

Si 


52 


SOLITARY PLACES IN LIFE 


to meet us or understand us, commune with or comfort us 
as we tarry in the depths of the garden of grief or soli¬ 
tude into which we have entered. 

What are some of these solitary places of life? 

I. One is the Gethsemane of bereavement by death. 
Friends may be ever so kind, may do ever so much, may 
send sweet messages, or say the most tender and sympath¬ 
etic words, and yet—we must “go a little further.” All 
companionship is left behind, and we suffer alone. No one 
can appreciate just how lonely we are without the loved 
one, just how much he or she was to us and how deep 
the grief we experience. Even a mother or loved wife or 
dearest sister or brother could not be made to understand 
fully our feelings. We have gone “a little further” than 
companionship can go and are alone in the garden of grief. 

II. Another such solitary place is the Gethsemane of 
enforced decision of duty. This was one special feature of 
Christ’s solitariness in the garden. Would he go on to the 
cross or not? Was it his duty to go on? In his human na¬ 
ture Christ shrank from death, as we all do, and he even 
prayed that the cup might pass from him. The struggle of 
duty was fought out to a decision there in Gethsemane. It 
was a struggle Christ had to make entirely alone. His dis¬ 
ciples could not help him. No one could. Alone he fought. 
Alone he won. It was a mighty spiritual victory, for when 
he retraced his steps from the garden’s seclusion it was 
with his face steadfastly set toward Calvary. 

Just so there are decisions of duty we must all make, 
and every place of such decision is a solitary place. Friends 
with their advice and sympathy and help may go part way, 
as Christ’s disciples went with him into the garden; but 
there comes a place where they must stop and we go “a little 
further” on; for in its final analysis every decision we 
make must be our own. Indeed, unless we make it, it is 


SOLITARY PLACES IN LIFE 


53 


not our decision at all. If we make it, it is our own, and 
it had to come from us in a solitary place when no one 
else was by. 

HI. Another such solitary place is the Gethsemane of 
bodily pain. No one can feel your pain but yourself. No 
one else can endure your weariness. How powerless you 
were when your sick child lay moaning in feverish anguish 
to enter into his soul and diminish his suffering by sharing 
it! He was your own dear child; but were you not shut 
out as by a wall of adamant ? Just so also are your friends 
and lovers shut out from you when you are in pain, for 
you are in another of those solitary places in life when 
you went “a little further” on. 

IV. Another such solitary place in life is the Gethsem¬ 
ane of diappointed hopes and aspirations. People have 
disappointments of which they can never tell. Some of 
our fondest hopes have been foiled and yet we could not 
utter even a whisper about them in any ear. Some of our 
highest aspirations, unrealized, have put us into a region 
where we dare not unburden our souls to any one, no mat¬ 
ter how near and dear. 

V. There are many such solitary places in life, but we 
mention only one other, the valley of the shadow of death. 
We die alone. If you have ever stood at a death-bed, 
then you know what we mean. Have you ever seen a soul 
start off on the long journey? Then you know how lonely 
a thing it is to die. Loving friends may be about the bed, 
and glad to go just as far along as ever they may, but 
there comes a point of separation. They must stop and 
the soul go on—alone out into the great unknown! 

But we are not quite right in speaking of these solitary 
places in life as being necessarily absolutely without com¬ 
panionship. When Christ went “a little further” into the 
garden, God was with him. And, blessed be God, when 


54 


SOLITARY PLACES IN LIFE 


we must go into our Gethesmane we may have Christ 
with us, a Companion and Friend who can understand us 
and help us. He can do for us what no other friend can 
do. When bereaved, or deciding duty, or in bodily pain, 
or when disappointed in our hopes and aspirations, he will 
be with us, if we have taken him for our friend, to com¬ 
fort and to cheer. And even at last when we come to die, 
he will still be our faithful guide, and we will be able to 
say with David: “Yea, though I walk through the valley 
of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for Thou art 
with me, Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me. ,> The 
fact that there are solitary places in life only serves, then, 
to give emphasis to that other fact of our need of Christ 
for a Friend. He will be your Friend and mine if we let 
him. He stands at the door of your heart. Let him in! 

Prayer: “Almighty God! our Heavenly Father, who 
hast given us in thy Son Jesus Christ a fountain of life, 
which springing up within us, can make all things new, we 
thank thee for the deeper meaning which he gives to life— 
for the quickening sense of duty, the faith under sorrow, 
the immortal hopes, which we owe to him. And we pray 
that his divine instructions may be so received by us with 
grateful hearts, that no resistance of ours may hinder his 
freely working within us a miracle as when he changed the 
water into wine. In the power of his Spirit may our griefs 
be transformed into consolations, our infirmities into 
strength to do well, our sins into repentance, our fainting 
and halting spirits into an heavenly mind; and finally, the 
doubts, the discouragements, the trials of this earthly life 
into the full assurance and unclouded bliss of an eternal 
life with thee, through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. 
Amen.” 

Repeat together the Lord’s Prayer. 


FOGS AND FAITH 


Motto for the Week: “All things work together for 
good to them that love God” Rom. 8:28. 

Hymn: “Lord of all being, throned afar” —O. W. 
Holmes. 

Scripture: Psalm 121:1-8. 

Meditation: FOGS AND FAITH. 

Text: “Clouds and darkness are round about him; 
righteousness and judgment are the habitations of his 
throne.” Ps. 97:2. 

The central thought in this psalm is that God reigns. 
This is stated in the first verse to be sufficient reason 
for universal joy. “Let the earth rejoice.” Other reigns 
have produced injustice, oppression, bloodshed, terror; the 
reign of the infinitely gracious Jehovah is the hope of man¬ 
kind, and when men generally yield to it the race will have 
its paradise restored. 

Because God is God it is impossible for men to under¬ 
stand all his acts. “His way is in the sea and his path in 
the great waters.” 

I. The first fact we notice, then, is this, that God 
governs the world mysteriously. “Clouds and darkness 
are round about him.” God veils himself essentially. So 
he revealed himself at Sinai, when clouds and darkness were 
upon the mountain. So he revealed himself to the chil¬ 
dren of Israel along the wilderness journey, in a pillar of 
cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. So he revealed 

55 


56 


FOGS AND FAITH 


himself when his glory filled the temple of Solomon at its 
dedication. So he revealed himself on the mount of trans¬ 
figuration when a “bright cloud overshadowed” the dis¬ 
ciples. God veils himself in his providential dealings with 
men. His ways are past finding out. Around the history 
of the Church dark clouds of persecution have hovered. 
Around the histories of nations dark clouds of revolution 
and war and bloodshed have hung. Around the history of 
individual Christians dark clouds of strange providential 
dealings have wrapped the soul in mystery and distress. 
God knows the ways of men, but men know not God’s 
ways. “His judgments are unsearchable and his ways past 
finding out.” God rules the world mysteriously,—mysteri¬ 
ously to men of finite minds. We are not able to take into 
our conception the doings, or reasons for the doings, of an 
infinite God. 

II. But the second fact, and one which we gladly no¬ 
tice is that God governs the world righteously. He may 
rule mysteriously but it is not mistakenly or wrongly; it 
is altogether and only righteously. God’s ways may be dark, 
but they are just. Righteousness is the essential perfection 
of God’s being. It is his nature. What he does is right. 
“Clouds and darkness are round about him;” but “right¬ 
eousness and judgment are the habitations of his throne.” 
Righteousness is his immutable attribute, and judgment 
marks his every act. As some one has well said, “Absolute 
power is safe in the hands of him who cannot err, or act 
unrighteously.” 

However mysterious God’s dealings there are three great 
sources of consolation to Christians. The first is in the 
thought of God’s love. God is love. His very nature is love. 
All his acts are prompted by love. The second is the thought 
of God’s wisdom. He is infinitely wise. He knows what is 
best for us. He knows the end from the beginning. His 


FOGS AND FAITH 


57 


ways are the wisest ways for us all. The third is the 
thought of his power. He is able to make all things work 
together for our good. He is able to make good come 
out of seeming evil. He says, “What I do thou knowest 
not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.” The time is 
coming when God will make plain to us the reasons for all 
his dealings with us; and then we shall approve them and 
say, “He has done all things well.” 

“Did I ever mention to you,” writes E. P. Hood to a 
friend, “what I thought as I saw the picture of a German 
painter some time ago? I could not make out what he 
meant by it. It was called ‘Cloud Land/ and seemed noth¬ 
ing but cloud upon cloud. As I looked I saw that every 
cloud turned into an angel or an angel’s wing; and the 
whole picture, which seemed only at first a mass of gloom, 
looked out upon me with a hundred angels’ eyes. So with 
all clouds, if God comes nigh to us by them; look at 
them and they will turn into angels. They are not desirable 
to us in themselves. We foolish men would walk always 
in day brightness—we do not want clouds—but God knows 
their value, else he would never send them unto us.” 

This is certainly a beautiful illustration of the truth that 
every dispensation of Providence, however dark it may 
seem, is a token of God’s love. There is an angel, a mes¬ 
senger of grace in every cloud, and he is visible to the 
eye of faith. Sometimes the darkness that prevents our see¬ 
ing is only a fog that we should look above. A beautiful 
illustration of this is given by Rev. Isaac O. Rankin, in his 
sermon from the text, “Looking unto Jesus, the author and 
finisher of our faith.” 

“Sometimes the sailor, homeward bound, from the 
ship’s deck can see no land,” says he, “only a bank of mist 


58 


FOGS AND FAITH 


low-lying on the horizon's rim. Chart and compass tell him 
that the land is near, but where the sky and water seem 
to meet there is only a haze. 

Then, if he lifts his eyes above that mist and heat, some 
mountain peak will stand out clear against the sky. The 
onward way, the port, the broad base of the mountain, 
and the continent of which it is a part are lost in haze, but 
the summit rises out in clear air, far, visible and guiding on 
toward home. 

So we must journey toward the heaven of our faith 
and hope. We look to the ship’s course, and there is only 
mystery of haze of sea and shore. But, when we lift our 
eyes to the hills, the land mark of our faith, the uplifted 
figure of our Lord appears. 

“ ‘Looking unto Jesus’—the uplifted look that sees the 
shining of the love of God in Christ—is the secret of as¬ 
surance and of peace amid earth’s doubts and fears.” 

Let us remember that though clouds and darkness are 
sometimes around the God of Providence yet righteousness 
and judgment and Fatherly love are ever the habitation of 
his throne. Trust him. Trust God, even in the dark. We 
do not know our way but we do know our Guide. 

Prayer: “Almighty God, Giver of all good, who hast 
given, above all thy gifts, the crowning mercy that we are 
called in Christ Jesus to know and love and >erve thee, w T e 
would bring thee thanks and praises fo- the divine light 
which reveals the heart of grace in thy leading of souls and 
peoples. Help us to rise to a fit gratitude for the overrun¬ 
ning blessings which thou givest ever, even to the darkest 
lot and life, the temporal felicities, the divine comforts, the 
eternal hopes. That all things are of thy mercy, and in 
thy mercy, we thank thee. Make us to sing thy song in 


FOGS AND FAITH 


59 


the light and in the night to touch thy hand and be at 
peace. Grant, we pray, with all other blessings, the best 
gifts, thankful and trustful hearts, that thou mayest be our 
Lord and King forevermore. We ask through Christ, 
Amen.” 

Offer the Lord’s Prayer in unsion. 


THE DUTY AND INFLUENCE OF 
FAMILY WORSHIP 

Motto for the Week: “This day is salvation come to 
this house.” Luke 19 :g. 

Hymn: “Another day begun!” —John Ellerton. 

Scripture: Deut. 11:1-21. 

Meditation: THE DUTY AND INFLUENCE OF 
FAMILY WORSHIP. 

Text: “As for me and my house, we will serve the 
Lord.” Joshua 24:15. 

Nothing indicates the feebleness of modern piety more 
than the absence of family worship from so many Chris¬ 
tian homes. If we are not religious in our homes, and if 
our religion does not shape itself into home worship, it cer¬ 
tainly is of a very doubtful character.. 

It is a happy fact that there are so many signs of a 
present and real revival of interest and practice in regard to 
this duty and privilege of family worship. There is a family 
altar league which has recently enrolled many thousands 
of families in a covenant to make it the rule of their 
life to gather daily for Bible reading and prayer. We be¬ 
lieve this league is only at the beginning of its great mission 
and success. Much emphasis has been placed on this duty 
and privilege also by the various young people’s organiza¬ 
tions in many denominations. Faithful pastors and other 
Christian workers have recognized the loss from a falling 
away in the habit of having family prayers and are calling 

60 



THE DUTY AND INFLUENCE OF FAMILY WORSHIP 61 


upon all Christians to return to the goodly custom. In per¬ 
mitting the falling away—on account of the great rush 
of our modern life—Christians were being involved in a 
loss far greater than many of them realized. But many 
families are now awakening to the conviction that the 
family altar is not alone a duty and a privilege, but that it 
is a necessity to the best interests and the highest happiness 
of the individual and of the family, as also that the neglect 
of the family altar is a menace to the well-being of both 
the Church and the State because the quality of life in either 
cannot be better than the quality of the average family 
life. 

I. Let us think of family worship first from the stand¬ 
point of duty. That it is a duty is plain in view of the 
fact that the parents make the religious atmosphere of the 
home. The question of what it shall be is in their hands. 

It is a duty also in view of the fact that such recogni¬ 
tion is due to God. God certainly ought to be recognized 
in the family life. 

That it is a duty is plainly seen in the fact that Je¬ 
hovah pronounces blessings upon all who do in this way 
honor him—see Deut. 11:21, 23 and 2 Samuel 6:11—and a 
curse is pronounced upon the “families that call not on his 
name,” Jeremiah 10:25. 

II. The influence of family worship. It has a re¬ 
markable sin-deterring influence. Many a child or older 
person has been kept from yielding to temptation under 
the memories of the morning or evening prayer at the 
home altar. Day by day as we go along it deters us 
from sin, and all through the years of later life the memories 
of the parental prayers have a hallowing and sanctifying 
result. 

There is also wondrous educating influence in the daily 
assemblage of the family for prayer. When through child- 


62 THE DUTY AND INFLUENCE OF FAMILY WORSHIP 


hood and youth the custom has been regularly maintained its 
influence over the life is such as can never be wholly oblit¬ 
erated. But think especially of how much actual knowledge 
of God’s Word the repeated reading brings, and how much 
instruction is gained also in the art of prayer and of free 
converse with God. Family worship is a great training 
institution. It impresses the children, and at an age when 
impressions are the most lasting. It gives a practical and 
personal turn to piety. It brings religion home to parents 
and children. It gives to the father authority, dignity and 
honor in the eyes of the household. It brings God into 
the home life in a real and impressive way. It gives eternal 
things importance, and thrusts back the trivial follies and 
fashions of the world to the places where they belong. The 
members of the family are bound together as they would 
not otherwise be, and the precious memories of the family 
altar linger while life lasts. There is an elevation of tone 
ihat would not otherwise come into the household. There 
is a spirit of obedience that would not otherwise be engen¬ 
dered. There is nothing else that so sweetens home life. 
True family worship is a fountain that brings streams of 
holy influences into every part of the daily life. It is a vase 
of perfume that sheds fragrance over all. It softens asper¬ 
ities. It quells anger. It quiets impatience. It settles dif¬ 
ferences. It subdues evil passions. Hearts that are drawn 
together at God’s feet every day cannot get very far apart. 
The frictions of the day are forgotten when all voices mingle 
in the same upward-breathing petitions. As the tender 
words of inspiration fall with their benign counsels all feel¬ 
ing of unkindness melts away. The altar in the midst won¬ 
derfully hallows and sweetens the home fellowship. Be¬ 
sides, it puts new strength into every heart. It comforts 
sorrow. It is a shield against temptation. It smoothes out 
the wrinkles of care. It imparts strength for burden-bear- 


THE DUTY AND INFLUENCE OF FAMILY WORSHIP 63 

ing. It quickens every religious sentiment and keeps the 
fires burning on every heart’s altar. There are no draw¬ 
backs whatever to the influences for good that come in the 
train of devout, regular, family worship. The best image 
of heaven which this earth can afford is found when a house¬ 
hold is gathered to learn God’s will from his holy Word, to 
raise the voice in song or praise in honor of his name, and 
to hold communion with him in united prayer. Every fam¬ 
ily can thus breathe the air of heaven every day, and all the 
way to heaven becomes heaven-like. 

III. The manner of conducting family worship. This 
is very important. It should be made so pleasant as to be 
looked forward to with gladness even by the youngest 
children. Too often it is made tedious, monotonous, bur¬ 
densome. Men fall into stereotyped order which they never 
vary. Long passages are read, and the prayers offered are 
not only long, but are the very same every day from year 
to year, with no adaptation to the home-life, or to the ca¬ 
pacities of children. There is no reason why the family 
worship should not be the most delightful exercise in the 
home-life. It should be the continued study of the heads of 
households to make it bright, interesting and profitable. To 
make it dull and irksome is treason to real religion. It 
is a sacred duty and privilege which Comes to every young 
married couple to erect the family altar. In so doing their 
hearts are drawn closer than ever together, and they are 
made to feel as never before that they can safely trust in 
one another. Even love itself seems a more sacred thing 
and is sanctified and blessed by united prayer. If it should 
happen that only the wife is a Christian the duty ought not 
on that account to be neglected. 

A devoted young lady of twenty-one became the wife 
of a young man who was not a Christian. But the husband 
admired and respected his wife’s earnest piety. After some 


64 THE DUTY AND INFLUENCE OF FAMILY WORSHIP 


months of their niarried life a friend, in answer to inquiry, 
learned that they had lived a life of prayer together. “Was 
your husband willing to pray with you?” asked the friend. 
“No, but we had prayers together every day, and he seemed 
glad to have it so. He read, and I prayed.” Is it strange 
at all that within a brief period that husband was brought 
naturally into a personal experience and confession of Chris¬ 
tian faith and that the time came when she read and he 
prayed? Let every married couple begin with the family 
altar and keep it up as long as life shall last. The bless¬ 
ings and benefits will be innumerable, and will last long after 
they have passed from earth to heaven. 

Prayer: “O God, our Father, of whom the whole 
family in heaven and on earth is named: Bestow upon 
our household, at the beginning of this day, that grace which 
shall keep us in the fellowship of the Christian way; and 
grant unto each one of us that heavenly guidance and con¬ 
trol, in all our labors, pleasures, and trials, which shall main¬ 
tain our hearts in peace with one another and with thee. 
Graciously help and prosper us in the doing of our various 
duties, with a willing and a cheerful mind; and defend us 
all, by thine almighty power, both from inward and from 
outward harm; so that, when the day is ended, it may not 
leave us in sorrow, strife, or shame, but in true unity and 
thankful rest, through thy merciful favor and thy forgiv¬ 
ing love, in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


CHRIST DWELLING WITHIN 


Motto for the Week: “Christ in you, the hope of 
glory” Col. i \2j. 

Hymn: “One there is above all others” —John New¬ 
ton. 

Scripture: Col. i: 1-29. 

Meditation: CHRIST DWELLING WITHIN. 

Text: “I live f yet not I, but Christ liveth in me” Gal. 
2:20. 

There is in a Russian palace a famous “Saloon of 
Beauty/' in which are hung over eight hundred and fifty 
portraits of young women. The pictures were all painted 
for Catherine the Second, the Empress. They are beauti¬ 
ful women, the artist having made a journey through all the 
fifty provinces of the Russian empire to find his models. The 
painter was extremely desirous of pleasing his royal patron, 
and, very happily for him, he struck upon the idea of mak¬ 
ing every picture convey a half concealed compliment to the 
Empress. In each picture may be detected by the close ob¬ 
server some hidden, delicate reference to the royal person 
for whom they were painted: in one some favorite surround¬ 
ing is seen; in another some favorite adornment; in others 
some jewel, or fashion, or flower, or style of dress; so that 
in each one something characteristic of the Empress is seen, 
all tributes to her beauty or compliments to her taste. The 
walls, therefore, really reflect the Empress herself in what¬ 
ever direction you look. 


65 


66 


CHRIST DWELLING WITHIN 


The artist, Count Rotari, made his own name immortal 
because of his inventive ingenuity in the flattery of an 
earthly monarch. But may we not make a spiritual ap¬ 
plication of this fact, and in doing so find pointed out to us 
something worthy of our utmost endeavors? Was it not 
something very like this artist’s devotion, only in a higher, 
worthier sphere, that Paul was being moved by when he 
said: “I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and 
the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith 
of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for 
me”? The world saw Paul, the Apostle, but at the same 
time they saw Christ in the person of his disciple. Every 
grace that Paul possessed was but a faint reflection of the 
perfect beauty of Christ. Every virtue which Paul exhibited 
was only a manifestation in lesser degree of the holiness 
of his sinless Lord; each beauty in person or character a 
faint showing forth of him whom he imitated, “the One 
altogether lovely.” 

But the reason Paul was able in any degree to manifest 
Christ was far more vital and deep-seated than could be 
illustrated by any painter’s power to put character and 
beauty on his canvas. The secret was that Christ dwelt 
within him. “I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.” 

I. Notice, first, the fact of Christ’s indwelling in be¬ 
lievers. It is a great mystery, but it is a fact. It is an unique 
but glorious truth that the Lord Jesus Christ actually 
makes his home in the hearts of his faithful people. A 
great mystery it is, indeed; but so are human life and the 
eternity of God and the incarnation of Christ profound 
mysteries, yet we accept them. We- are plainly told in 
God’s Word that God dwelleth with him that is of an 
humble spirit, that the Spirit of God dwelleth in us, and 
that Christ is in us our hope of glory. Christ’s parting 
promise was that if we kept his words he would come and 


CHRIST DWELLING WITHIN 


67 

make his abode with us. Christ “dwells in our hearts 
through faith.” The figure of speech represents the idea 
of a building, a temple, with the Christ resident within as 
the indwelling guest. Far more must be implied than 
mere Divine influence over us, such as a friend exerts 
over a friend, a teacher over a pupil, or even a mother 
over a child. The fact is that to become a Christian is to 
have a new and spiritual life enter the soul, as when a seed 
with its living germ is planted in the dead soil. 

II. Having noticed the fact, let us proceed to notice 
some of the blessed results of Christ’s indwelling. 

The first is that we are moved by a new motive. “The 
love of Christ constraineth us.” There is all the difference 
in the world between trying to force ourselves under the 
pressure of duty and the being moved by love. It is exactly 
the difference between having Christ outside us and having 
him within. Only as we get Christ into our hearts and 
let him dwell with us in his Spirit, will we find the right 
motive moving us or that we are really attaining to any 
true ideal of the Christian life. 

Another result will be the gradual expulsion of evil. 
Indeed, this expulsion may be very rapid if we will let 
Christ have full possession of our hearts. “Walk in the 
Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh.” 

Another result will be joy,—a joy that the world can 
neither give or take away. Christ within makes an inner 
joy that all earth’s trials and sorrows cannot quench. 

Another result will be a gradual transformation into the 
likeness of Christ himself. 

“Finish then thy new creation, 

Pure and spotless let us be; 

Let us see thy great salvation 
Perfectly secured by Thee; 


68 


CHRIST DWELLING WITHIN 


Changed from glory into glory, 

’Till in Heaven we take out place, 

Till we cast our crowns before thee, 

Lost in wonder, love and praise.” 

How much is there about us to remind those around us 
of Christ? Every manifestation of truth and holiness in us 
is only a new tribute, like the painter’s tribute to his 
Empress, only in an infinitely higher realm, to him who is the 
Truth, the Life, the Way, the Holy One of God. The first 
move toward a Christian life is the opening of our hearts to 
the knocking Saviour. After that the degree of our holiness 
will depend upon the degree to which we give him welcome 
house-room in our hearts. 

Prayer: “O God, who art rich in forgiveness, grant 
that we may always hold fast the good things which we 
receive from thee, and as often as we fall into sins, may 
be raised up by repentance. Let thy mercy come upon 
us, O God, in great fulness, even as our sins against thee 
have been many; and may thy forgiving love overflow all 
our transgressions that they may be covered and blotted 
out. Grant us, O Lord, we pray thee, to trust in thee with 
all our hearts; seeing that as thou dost always resist the 
proud who confide in their own strength, so thou dost not 
forsake those who make their boast of thy mercy. Jesus, our 
Master, do thou meet us while we walk the way, and long to 
reach the better country; so that following thy Light, we 
may keep the path of righteousness, and never wander into 
the darkness of this world’s night, whilst thou, who art the 
Way, the Truth, and the Life, art guiding us. We ask all 
in thy dear name. Amen.” 

Join together in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


FOLLOWERS OF THAT WHICH 
IS GOOD 


Motto for the Week: “The path of the just is as the 
shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect 
day Prov. 4:18. 

Hymn: “O, Master, let me walk with Thee.” —Wash¬ 
ington Gladden. 

Scripture: Psalm 1:1-6. 

Meditation: FOLLOWERS OF THAT WHICH IS 
GOOD. 

Text: “And who is he that will harm you, if ye be 
followers of that which is good?” 1 Peter 3:13. 

Peter often refers in his epistles to the persecutions the 
early disciples had to undergo. They frequently had to for¬ 
feit their earthly possessions; but they had a reserved in¬ 
heritance. They were sustained by God’s Holy Spirit, by a 
reliance upon Christ’s infallible promises, and by an un¬ 
doubting confidence in the life to come. Believers might 
suffer, but they could take no real harm. While this was 
one application made to those to whom the First Epistle 
of Peter was written it also had another application to 
them and to us. It says that if a man be a follower of that 
which is good it is probable that no one will have any de¬ 
sire to harm him. But even if evil is planned, it is certain 
that no one can have the power to do him any real harm. 
The providence of God in a peculiar manner watches over 
the righteous to preserve them under all events. When 

69 


70 FOLLOWERS OF THAT WHICH IS GOOD 

God’s favor rests upon us, man’s enmity is either in a 
great measure disarmed or else it is thwarted. “For the 
eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are 
open unto their cry.” “Who is he that will harm you, if ye 
be followers of that which is good?” 

The figure here seems to be that of a path pursued. 

I. Those who follow that which is good walk in a 
straight path. That is one advantage. It is not crooked, 
tortuous, troublesome, full of hard decisions. The path 
of right may be narrow and sometimes hard, but happily 
it is straight. It is really easier to be an out and out 
Christian, to be clear over on the right side of moral 
questions, to have no questions of compromise,—to walk 
straight. 

II. Then, too, those who follow that which is good 
walk in a safe path. This is the special, most prominent 
fact the apostle is asserting. The way, he says, however 
straight or hard, is a secure way. There are no pitfalls, 
snares, or dangers in the path of obedience to God. The 
fellow travelers are safe companions. People who walk 
in the way of righteousness are mutually helpful. Their 
society is an additional security. Their counsel and com¬ 
panionship are blessed. People who walk in that way have 
the fellowship of God. He is always a fellow-pilgrim 
with his people. He pitches his tabernacle close by their 
tents. They walk with God. God with them, they have 
absolute safety. “Who is he that will harm you, if ye be 
followers of that which is good?” Will God harm you? 
No, he cannot, because of his satisfaction with Christ, your 
Saviour; because of his word, his covenant, his oath; be¬ 
cause of his own paternal and infinite love. Will the 
events of providence harm you? No, they cannot, because 
the events of providence are not a blind fortuitous suc¬ 
cession of events, because the events of providence are 


FOLLOWERS OF THAT WHICH IS GOOD 


7 1 


under the control of the loving heavenly Father. Will Sa¬ 
tan harm you? No, he cannot. He is powerful—in the 
number of his allies, in his wonderful range of knowledge 
and in his cunning and invisibility—but he is under re¬ 
straint. In God and Christ and the blessed Spirit we 
have all-powerful defence. “We are more than conquer¬ 
ors through him that loved us.” Will ungodly men harm 
you? No, they cannot. They, too, are set against the 
people of God, but they are also under restraint. Their 
own consciences, natural affection, self-interest, the customs 
c-f society, and the laws of civil governments restrain them. 
They are also under the direct restraint of God. “Surely 
the wrath of man shall praise thee; the remainder of wrath 
shalt thou restrain.” Will death harm you? No, it can¬ 
not. You will still live, and only the more immediately 
under the Divine care, and entirely sheltered from the at¬ 
tacks of foes. “Who is he that will harm you, if ye be 
followers of that which is good?” Why, even apparent 
harm is real good when it comes to the obedient soul. God 
is infinitely loving, infinitely wise, infinitely strong. His 
heart prompts that which is best for us; his wisdom se¬ 
lects that which is best for us; his power is able to make 
all things work together for our good. What men often 
construe as danger and disaster is simply discipline, or the 
preparation the Christian is getting to be able to receive 
the highest good. 

III. Those who follow that which is good walk in a 
happy path. They are made happy by their sense of secur¬ 
ity, by their companionships, and by the grace God gives 
along the way. Don’t pity Christians. They are happy. 
Those who follow that which is good walk in a path of op¬ 
portunities for usefulness also. They exert an influence for 
good, they do good, their lives result in good, and they re¬ 
ceive the reward of those who do good. 


72 


FOLLOWERS OF THAT WHICH IS GOOD 


Be straight. Live a life of absolute and undeviating 
obedience to conscience, the Scripture and the Holy Spirit. 
Be fearless. Be absolutely without timidity in following 
that which is good. Be trustful. Have absolute confi¬ 
dence in the goodness and wisdom of God’s dealings and 
leadings. Be zealous. Learn the art of absolute aban¬ 
donment to duty and holy living without care of conse¬ 
quences. 

Prayer: “O Lord, thy hands have formed us, and 
thou hast sent us into this world that we may walk in 
the way that leads to heaven and thyself, and may find a 
lasting rest in thee who art the source and center of our 
souls. Look in pity on us poor pilgrims in the narrow way; 
let us not go astray, but reach at last our true home 
where our Father dwells. Guide and govern us from 
day to day, and bestow on us food and strength for body 
and soul, that we may journey on in peace. Forgive us 
for having hitherto so often wavered or looked back, and 
let us henceforward march straight on in the way of 
thy laws, and may our last step be a safe and peaceful 
passage to the arms of thy love, and the blessed fellowship 
of the saints in light. Hear us, O Lord, and glorify thy 
name in us that we may glorify thee for ever and ever, 
through Christ, our Lord, we ask. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


AN AGE OUT OF BREATH 


Motto for the Week: “My heart and my flesh crieth 
out for the living God Ps. 84:2. 

Hymn: “Nearer, my God, to thee” —Sara F. Adams. 

Scripture: Matt. 5:1-16. 

Meditation: AN AGE OUT OF BREATH. 

Text: “Oh that I knew where I might hnd him!” Job 
23 : 3- 

This is an exceedingly busy age. People do not seem to 
have time for God. They do not seem as anxious to know 
God as men in the past were. We do not hear them call¬ 
ing out, “Oh that I knew where I might find him!” or say¬ 
ing with the Psalmist, “My heart and my flesh crieth out 
for the living God.” “This,” as some one has said, “is 
an age out of breath.” It is going down to the tomb of 
epochs broken-winded with the pace at which it lives its 
hard, useful, polemic, inquisitive, restless, mechanical life. 
An age out of breath is an age when there is but little faith, 
for “he that believeth shall not make haste.” An age out 
of breath is an age which leaves God out of its life. An 
age out of breath is a materialistic age, and “ye cannot 
serve God and mammon.” It is more emphatically true 
now than ever: “Surely every man walketh in a vain show; 
surely they are disquieted in vain; he heapeth up riches and 
knoweth not who shall gather them.” The clerk says he 
must be at his work early and stay late. The business man 
says he must put all of himself into his business or he can- 

73 



74 


AN AGE OUT OF BREATH 


not hope to succeed, so hot is the pace of competition. So 
the rush and hurry are encouraged, and men push on in 
their breathless course. Yet people do have heart hunger. 
There are those who want to know God. But they fail be¬ 
cause they are caught in the rapids of time and the tor¬ 
rents of trade are carrying them onward toward the fall. 
They fail because they fail to use the means to come into 
acquaintance with God. 

I. One condition of knowing God is thought. It is a 
law in life that a man apprehends only that upon which 
he fixes attention. We have read that there is in the jail 
at Oswego, N. Y., a peculiar cell. It is made as a sort 
of cage and revolves all the while. In it is put any criminal 
who is suspected of an intention of jail breaking. In this 
cell the man is kept revolving all the while, does not stay in 
any one place long enough to dig out at the sides of the 
jail, even if he would. In this hurried age men are kept on 
the move. They do not give themselves time enough to dig 
out the thoughts that would enrich them with truth and 
free, them from error. If we would “buy the truth” we 
must pay the price of attention, of thought. It is true 
that we would know God better if we thought more about 
him, if we “meditated on these things and gave ourselves 
wholly to them.” We read the Bible sometimes. But do 
we study it? We read books, religious books, written by 
men of to-day. These are more interesting we feel—but do 
not say—than the Bible. But if we wish to know God we 
must study his Word. All other religious books are but as 
the sparks sent ofif from this central sun. No book has the 
spiritual vitality of the Bible. No book will so enable us 
to find and know God. Study, meditate, learn spiritual 
truth,—the very first condition of knowing God is thought. 

II. Another means to the knowledge of God is prayer. 
To know about God and to know God are two very dif- 


AN AGE OUT OF BREATH 


75 


ferent things. You may read the life of Phillips Brooks 
or of William E. Gladstone. You may come to know many 
facts about these great men, facts that were even unknown 
to even the members of their own families. It is a good 
thing to know about such men. But what is knowing about 
them as compared to the high privileges of those who knew 
them, lived with, associated with them in the closeness of 
the home life and daily contact? People may know a good 
deal of God; they may hear sermons and read books and 
know the literature of theology. But to know God is a very 
different thing from knowing about God. It is in prayer 
we come to know God. It is in the act of prayer we come 
into actual fellowship, association with him. In study we 
learn about God. In prayer we come to know him as friend 
knows friend. You wish to know God? Then you must 
go past the mere fact of knowing about God. You must 
come into actual touch with him through earnest prayer. In 
prayer you do touch him. In prayer you feel his life ac¬ 
tually flow into your life. Your soul is lost in him and his 
life flows into yours. 

III. Still another means to the knowledge of God is 
action. Many people have no small degree of learning, of 
spiritual knowledge. And they have feeling, too. Thev 
go to a prayer-meeting and their hearts are moved. They 
hear a sermon and their emotions are stirred. They go 
home with good feelings and resolves. But soon these van¬ 
ish into thin air. They do nothing. Next week they come 
back again to the church service or the prayer-meeting. 
Again they go through the same process, but they do noth¬ 
ing. If we would really know God we must add to thought 
and learning and feeling, actual doing. 

A friend met a thoughtful young man coming out at 
the church door. The hour seemed a little early for the 
service to be over. The friend said to him: “Is the sermon 


AN AGE OUT OF BREATH 


76 

done?” “No,” said the young man, “it is preached, but 
it all remains to be done.” What we hear and learn and 
resolve remains to be done, and it must be done before we 
can really know God. 

A woman came to her pastor complaining that she could 
not really enjoy the Bible. She read it; but it seemed to 
have little or no interest for her. He said: “Let me tell 
you how to read it. When you open it at a chapter read 
until you come to the first thing it tells you to do; then close 
the book and go out and do it. After you have done that 
duty, then come back to the Bible until you come to the 
next command. Then go and do that.” The woman fol¬ 
lowed his directions. The next time she had a chance to 
talk with him she said that she was “finding the Bible a 
book of fascinating interest.” Make religion real to your¬ 
self by doing. Make God real to yourself by obeying what 
he says. To knowing and praying add doing. That is the 
way to come to know God. When you do his will you will 
know of the doctrine. 

Prayer: “Almighty God, grant that by the faithful 
practice of the things that we know to be true, our hearts 
may be purged of all evil thoughts and desires, and we 
be brought back again to something of the pureness of 
spirit by which alone thou mayest be served. Forgive all 
our wanderings from the light. Grant that we may escape 
this great condemnation—that light having come into the 
world, we have chosen darkness rather than light. Show 
us the light, and cause us to live in it, and by it to pass 
through the shadow of death with safety, and to abide with 
it evermore. Hear us of thy mercy, through Jesus Christ 
our Lord. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


THE PEACE CHRIST GIVES 


Motto for the Week: “What time I am afraid I will 
trust in thee .” Ps. 56:3. 

Hymn: “In heavenly love abiding” —Anna L. Waring. 

Scripture; John 14:23-31. 

Meditation: THE PEACE CHRIST GIVES. 

Text: “My peace I give unto you.” John 14:27. 

This is one of Christ’s sweetest assurances to his fol¬ 
lowers— : that he will give us peace. And it is a special kind 
or quality of peace he promises. The emphasis is upon the 
word “My.” “My peace give I unto you.” The peace is 
the same deep, abiding and blessed peace he enjoyed. 

It was not the peace of affluence. Some of us think we 
would have peace if we had in our possession all the things 
we long for. We feel quite sure that if we had wealth and 
the things wealth can purchase we would be in a most sat¬ 
isfied, tranquil and peaceful state. But none of these things 
did Christ have. 

Neither was his the peace of tranquility. Some of us 
are so hurried in our lives, so pressed with duties that we 
long for a lodge in some vast wilderness, or for the oppor¬ 
tunity to sit down in absolute quiet and comfort, surrounded 
by such things as we like, and be calm and undisturbed. We 
long for the peace of tranquility. But Christ had not this. 
He was hurried, and pressed upon, opposed by enemies, ap¬ 
pealed to by friends. His was the very opposite to a tran¬ 
quil life. 


77 


78 


THE PEACE CHRIST GIVES 


Neither was his peace the peace of congenial compan¬ 
ionship. On the contrary, he was solitary. Few under¬ 
stood him or were able to enter into sympathy with him or 
his plans. His best friends had no close appreciation of 
him, his impulses or feelings. He was more than misun¬ 
derstood. He was actively opposed. He was hated and 
hounded and wounded with the voices of opposition and 
the clash of strife. His was not the peace of congenial 
companionship and friendship. Therefore, that is not the 
kind of peace he promised his followers. 

What, then, is the peace he gives? 

I. First, it is peace of conscience. Sin is war. Sin 
is strife. Sin puts discord into our lives. Conscious of 
sin, we cannot be at peace. Christ’s peace was the peace 
of sinlessness. In the midst of all his press of work and 
the disturbances that surrounded him he had the peace of 
conscious integrity, of oneness with his Father. This is one 
feature of the peace he gives us. He makes us free from 
sin and able to enjoy the deep and abiding peace of one 
just before God. 

II. Secondly, he gives us peace of character. He had 
the peace of a sound, stable, right centered character where 
there was no internal discord or struggle. His character 
had unity, harmony of purpose, was not disturbed by fickle¬ 
ness or changefulness. It is a great thing to possess a uni¬ 
fied character. We do not easily attain it. We approve the 
right and do the wrong. We are dual characters, torn by 
conflict within. But Christ’s peace was that of confirmed 
character, stable, sound, unified. That is the peace he will 
give us and does give us as we accept it. This is one of 
his greatest gifts. 

III. Again, he gives the peace of abiding trustfulness. 
This peace also Christ had. How often we hear him ex¬ 
claiming, “My Father,” and showing the utmost confidence 


THE PEACE CHRIST GIVES 


79 


in him. He never seemed to be the least disturbed, but 
believed that God’s will was always good. He gives us 
this peace so we can truly exclaim: “I worship thee, sweet 
will of God.” “Thy will is my peace.” In the midst of af¬ 
flictions and trials and troubles we have, through Christ, 
the peace of abiding trust in God. 

IV. Moreover, this peace he gives us is the source of 
power. Without peace there is no power. When the mind 
and heart are distracted and torn with the disturbances of 
sin, doubleness of character and the fear of distrust, we 
are devoid of power; our hands are enfeebled, our hearts 
are distracted, our energy is dissipated. But when we 
have peace, the peace Christ gives, we are “free to serve.” 
We have courage for undertaking and energy with which 
to bring success. Let us accept of Christ’s peace, his deep, 
continuous, abiding peace. Most desirable of gifts is it, 
and we can have it if we will accept. 

Prayer: “Grant unto us, Almighty God, of thy. good 
Spirit, that quiet heart, and that patient lowliness to which 
thy comforting Spirit comes; that we, being humble toward 
thee, and loving toward one another, may have our hearts 
prepared for that peace of thine which passeth understand¬ 
ing; which, if we have, the storms of life can hurt us but 
little, and the cares of life vex us not at all; in presence of 
which death shall lose its sting, and the grave its terror; and 
we, in calm joy, walk all the days of our appointed time, 
until our great change shall come. All of which we ask in 
the name of Christ. Amen.” 

Join together in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


RESURRECTION LOVE LESSONS 


Motto for the Week: “Blessed be the God and 
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which, according to his 
abundant mercy, hath begotten us again unto a lively hope, 
by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” i 
Peter 113. 

Hymn: “Christ the Lord is risen today” —Charles 
Wesley. 

Scripture: Matt. 28:1-10. 

Meditation: RESURRECTION LOVE LESSONS. 

Text: “And when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magda¬ 
lene, and Mary, the Mother of James, brought sweet spices 
that they might annoint him,” etc. Mark 16:1-7. 

On the evening of our Lord’s death, Friday, his body 
was buried. On the next day, the Hebrew Sabbath, our 
Saturday, by Pilate’s authority the stone of the sepul¬ 
chre was sealed and a military guard posted in front. In 
the dawn of Sunday an earthquake rent the tomb asunder 
and an angel heralded the resurrection, and today the 
whole civilized world stands around that open grave and 
rejoices in the risen Christ. Let us listen to some of the 
love lessons we may learn at the open grave of Jesus. 

I. Love is early. Human love was “very early” at 
the tomb. But Jesus and his angels were there still earlier. 
Human love is a very sweet and precious thing, but it can 
never keep pace with the Divine love. Our love may be 
drawn out toward the departed ones, but our love could not 

80 


RESURRECTION LOVE LESSONS 81 

wish them so well nor do so much for them as the Divine 
love, outrunning our wishes, has already done for them. 

II. Love is mighty. “When they looked the stone 
was rolled away.” 

“Looking at some trouble lying 

In the dark and dread unknown, 

We, too, often ask with sighing, 

‘Who shall roll away the stone?’ 

“But before the way was ended, 

Oft we’ve had with joy to own, 

Angels have from heaven descended, 

And have rolled away the stone.” 

The Divine love is better to us than all our fears. It 
is mighty in our behalf, and as we go lovingly forward 
we find the obstacles in the path of duty removed. 

III. Love is comforting. “Be not affrighted,” was the 
reassuring word of the heavenly messenger. They were 
in great sorrow and also now suddenly smitten with fears. 
How grateful to their hearts must have been these words 
of comfort, for the message of mighty cheer was added: 
“He is risen!” Their sorrow would have continued had 
they found the body there. But the supreme comfort-bear¬ 
ing announcement was made, though not fully compre¬ 
hended by the women, “He is risen from the dead.” 

IV. Love sends on errands. “Go.” “Go, tell.” “Go 
tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead.” This is 
your Easter commission. We are told by Mark that Mary 
“went and told them that had been with him as they 
mourned and wept.” Oh, how many mourning and weeping 
disciples there are still! How much some of Christ’s dis¬ 
ciples need this message to-day! Go, you, to them quicklv, 


82 


RESURRECTION LOVE LESSONS 


and tell. Tell of a living, not a dead Christ. Tell of a 
victorious, not a conquered Christ. It will bring com tori; 
in any trouble, cheer to any sorrowing heart. “For if we 
believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also 
which sleep in Jesus will bring God with him.” His res¬ 
urrection is our one abiding hope for ourselves and for 
our departed friends. Let no one fail to hear the message. 
Go, you, quickly and tell. Obey your Easter commission. 
It is a love-sent and lovely errand. 

V. Love makes promises. “He goeth before you into 
Galilee; there shall ye see him.” The disciples went, and 
they saw him, as was promised. We are to see him too. 
“We shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.” And 
until that time he is constantly “going before.” Do you 
drag faintly up the mount of temptation? He goeth be¬ 
fore. He was “led into the wilderness to be tempted.” 
Do you tread wearily the pathway of poverty? He goeth 
before. “The Son of Man hath not where to lay his head.” 
Do you walk lonely in the by-way of desertion? He goeth 
before. “All his disciples forsook him and fled.” Do you 
journey sadly to the grave of a loved one? He goeth be¬ 
fore. “Jesus therefore groaning in himself cometh to the 
grave” of his friend Lazarus. Are you near the valley 
of the shadow of death? He goeth before. He “became 
obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” Be¬ 
cause Jesus literally trod every pathway of human sorrow, 
so now spiritually he goeth before to give triumph in 
the hour of temptation, comfort in trial, strength in weak¬ 
ness, courage in danger, victory in death. “He goeth be¬ 
fore.” “There shall ye see him.” These were the promi¬ 
ses the disciples heard. Like promises are made to us, 
the first for every earthly experience, the other for the 
fruition of all, our experience when we pass from them 
unto heaven. 


RESURRECTION LOVE LESSONS 


83 


These and such as these are the love lessons we all 
may learn as, at this Easter season, we tarry at the open 
grave of our risen Lord. Let us take them into our hearts 
and joy in them, for to this end were they given. 

Prayer: “O God our Father and the Father of our 
risen Lord, impart to us the spirit of prayer. Our sins 
we confess and our weaknesses are laid bare in thy sight. 
The best of us are but sinners saved by grace. Give us, 
O God, some recognition of thy fatherhood. Look upon 
us in the face of thine annointed and for his sake own us 
as thine. We thank thee for the unspeakable gift of the 
Christ. But for him we had not known thy name nor 
thy will. For his life, his doctrine and his triumph over 
death we thank thee. May we become a part of all that 
was or is. And if it be that we are to suffer with him, 
help us to remember that the servant cannot hope to be 
greater than his master. Give us a passion for the welfare 
of others, and grant unto us a patience, such as we find 
in thee. We ask it in the name of him who was dead and 
is alive again, Jesus thy Son. Amen.” 

Repeat the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


EASTER HOPE AND DUTY 


Motto for the Week: “And when they looked, they 
saw that the stone was rolled away; for it was very great ” 
Mark 16:4. 

Hymn: “The day of resurrection! Earth tell it out 
abroad —John of Damascus. (8th Century.) Tr. by 
John M. Neale. 

Scripture: Mark 16:1-13. 

Meditation: EASTER HOPE AND DUTY . 

Text: “And very early in the morning the first day 
of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising 
of the sun.” Mark 16:2. 

On the first Easter morning, when our Lord rose from 
the grave, hope was born into the world. Looking into 
the empty sepulchre the disciples thought they had lost 
not only the earthly companionship, but even the sacred 
body of their beloved Master. They were in utter despair. 
But the facts were far otherwise than they thought. Christ 
was not dead, nor was his body stolen He had risen 
from the grave, the first-fruits of them that slept, hence¬ 
forth giving his followers, all of them and through all 
time, the hope of a blessed immortality. This is a “lively 
hope,”—that is, a living hope, in contradistinction from 
a dead hope. The hope kindled by Christ’s resurrection 
is a hope with a living, vital, life-giving power. 

I. The Easter hope is a hope of immortality beyond the 
grave. It is said that the Romans had a practice of light- 

84 


EASTER HOPE AND DUTY 


S5 


ing up their tombs. In the tomb of Tullia, Cicero’s daugh¬ 
ter, when opened a lamp was found. These lamps could 
illuminate the catacombs only for a day, and that with 
but a glimmering light, whose rays were confined to the 
walls of the catacombs. But the light Christ sheds upon 
the grave falls upon the vista of eternity, and you can see 
at this glad Eastertide immortality beyond. What a blessed 
hope this is! 

We all want to live. The thought of death in itself is 
dreadful. Not merely the fact of dying, but the separa¬ 
tions which of necessity are involved make us all shrink 
from it. But Christ said, “He that believeth in me, though 
he were dead, yet shall he live.” The Easter hope is a 
hope of immortality, of a blessed life forevermore. It 
is also a hope of seeing and being with Jesus. Can we 
grasp it? Here in this life we talk about Jesus, read about 
him, sing about him, but go on and on and never see him. 
But there, when our Easter hope is realized, we shall see 
him face to face. We shall be like him, dwell in his 
presence, and never again be out of his sight. No wonder 
Christians sing so joyously: 

“Some day the silver cord will break, 

And I no more as now shall sing; 

But, O, the joy when I shall wake 
Within the palace of the King. 

And I shall see Him face to face, 

And tell the story—Saved by grace.” 

II. The Easter hope is also a hope of meeting our loved 
ones gone before. If he is immortal and they are im¬ 
mortal and we are immortal, then when we come to be 
with him we shall be with them too,—with our loved ones 
gone before. 

In Venice is a very beautiful monument in the form 


EASTER HOPE AND DUTY 


of a pyramid. Within that structure are the remains of a 
little child in the sleep of death. On the door of the 
strange tomb is the inscription, “Till He come.” By the 
door stands an angel, sculptured from the whitest marble. 
One hand of the angel rests upon the latch of the door. 
The other holds a trumpet. The seraph is peering intently 
into the distant heavens, watching for the first appearance 
of our coming Lord. Lo! He comes! and every eye doth 
see him! The latch is uplifted, the door is thrown open, 
and the angel through his trumpet shouts: “Little sleeper, 
come forth from thy tomb!” You who mourn over the 
graves of loved ones, learn of hope that comes to you amid 
the flowers of Easter,—“It is only till He comes!” We are 
to see again those dear ones who have slipped away from 
us into the silent land. We are to hear again those hushed 
voices, touch those vanished hands, meet and evermore 
be with those we have loved and lost a while. It is only 
till He comes! 

HI. What is the duty of those possessing this hope? 
It is the same as was Mary’s the first Easter morning: “Go 
quickly and tell.” If there is one day in the year which 
should be more a missionary day than another, we think 
that day is Easter. We have the good news. Surely we 
ought to tell it. If our hope of immortality is “a living 
hope,” surely it will breathe, and breathing it will speak 
helpful, cheering, saving words to others. And it will 
walk; it will go to the grief-stricken, to the bedside of the 
sick and carry comfort and help. And it will sing, and 
it will smile, and it will work. On our birthdays we give 
gifts. Easter is the birthday of hope. What more natural 
than that on this natal day of immortality we should give 
this hope to some one else? 

We are told that in Jerusalem on Easter morning there 
is observed at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre a wonder- 


EASTER HOPE AND DUTY 


8 7 


fully solemn and impressive ceremony. It is very early 
and the building is very dark. Not a ray of light pene¬ 
trates the gloom to cheer the worshipers who throng the 
great auditorium, and not a word or sound comes from 
the multitude. Presently the Patriarch enters. Silently he 
makes his way past the people and to a curtain, which he 
lifts, and disappears into the place where they tell us 
the wounded body of our Lord once lay. The curtain 
closes behind him with a faint rustle, but still there is no 
whisper from the throng, no glimmer of light from altar 
or dome. It is as though the sun were dead, the stars for¬ 
gotten, and the voice of man hushed forever in the dark¬ 
ness and silence of that rock-hewn tomb. 

But suddenly the curtains part once more, and as they 
sway aside the Patriarch re-enters the church, bearing aloft 
a blazing torch which he has lighted at the Saviour’s empty 
sepulchre. Its light falls brilliantly upon the strained, ex¬ 
pectant faces of the throng and is reflected in thousands of 
eager, upturned eyes. Almost instantly a dark torch is 
thrust up to touch the burning one. It flames into light, 
and then another, and another, and another is brought, 
and soon hundreds of brilliant lights are blazing where 
nothing but darkness had been before. The long silent 
arches ring with glad shouts of “Christ is risen! Christ is 
risen! The Lord is risen indeed!” And then out into the 
city streets and along the highways everywhere go the 
light-bearers, kindling other torches as they run, until 
soon the whole town and the country about glows with 
light, all originating at the broken tomb of the risen Christ. 

Does not this suggest to us our real lesson of Easter 
duty? It is to pass the blessing on. It is to kindle the 
torches of others. It is to try to give this living hope to 
some one else and to continue doing so until the whole 
world is full of light,—until every soul shall be illumined 


88 


EASTER HOPE AND DUTY 


with the beautiful, cheering, holy light caught from the 
broken grave of Christ, the risen Saviour of the world. 

Prayer: “O Thou Prince of Life and First-Begotten 
of the dead! Who, by thy glorious resurrection, hast over¬ 
come death, and opened unto us the gate of everlasting 
life; enable us, by thy heavenly grace, to walk in newness of 
life, and to abound in the fruits of righteousness; so that 
we may at last triumph over death and the grave, and 
rise in thy likeness, having our vile bodies changed into 
the fashion of thine own glorious body, who art God over 
all, blessed forever. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


THE BRANDS OF CHRIST 


Motto for the Week: “Whose I am, and whom I 
serve” Acts 27:13. 

Hymn: “I am thine, 0 Lord” —Fannie J. Crosby. 

Scripture: Gal. 6:1-18. 

Meditation: THE BRANDS OF CHRIST. 

Text: “From henceforth let no man trouble me; for I 
bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.” Gal. 6:17. 

Not a few people in Christian lands, and the hostile op- 
posers of all missionary efforts among the unconverted na¬ 
tives in China, have for years been ringing the changes on 
the charge that all the converts to Christianity among the 
Chinese are “rice Christians.” They have claimed that 
there are no true converts, but that those who profess con¬ 
version, attach themselves to the missionaries and unite 
with the Christian churches, do it for the loaves and fishes, 
for the financial profit they get through employment by the 
missionaries as preachers, teachers and servants. But the 
way thousands of them stood up for Christ and suffered 
martyrdom in the Chinese insurrection of the summer of 
1900, should silence forever that false criticism. 

We trust that “rice Christians,” as an epithet of re¬ 
proach, will never be heard again. These Chinese Chris¬ 
tians have fully earned the right to say, with the Apostle 
Paul: “From henceforth let no one trouble me; for I 
bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.” From 
henceforth they have a right to a recognized standing as 

89 


90 


THE BRANDS OF CHRIST 


Christians; they have a right to be left untroubled by crit¬ 
icisms and suspicions and reproaches. The cowards are 
the weak-kneed Christians and the miserable opposers any¬ 
where who have criticised them. From henceforth let no 
man trouble them; they have a right to freedom from human 
criticism, for they bear in their bodies the marks of the 
Lord Jesus. 

It was to a credential like this Paul was referring when 
he wrote to the Galatian Christians. He said: “From 
henceforth/’ that is, for the remaining time, during the 
remainder of my life, “let no man trouble me.” 

Christians are not often subjected to such stripes and 
scourgings as Paul endured. But we should have some 
marks of our attachment to the Lord Jesus. 

I. Those marks upon Paul were the marks of owner¬ 
ship by Christ. Such should we bear. The figure Paul 
uses is “stigmata,” “slave-brands.” It was the custom in 
those days of darkness to prick or brand upon the body 
of a slave some distinctive letter or other mark of owner¬ 
ship, by which he might be deterred from attempting flight, 
or quickly traced or reclaimed in the event of his escape. 
More especially was the brand used in the case of theft or 
crime. To “bear in his body the marks” of any one, was 
for the branded one to carry about with him everywhere 
one or both of the two reproaches,—this man is a slave,— 
this man is a convict. But St. Paul was not ashamed to 
apply to himself such a figure. He said, “I am the slave, 
the bond-slave, of Christ, and I am not ashamed to bear 
about with me the reproach of being a Christian, a Christ’s 
man.” 

So should we each be Christ’s, saying, “Whose I am,” 
as also, “whom I serve.” We should be given over to his 
ownership, having no will of our own but his will, 


91 


THE BRANDS OF CHRIST 

II. These marks upon Paul were also the marks of a 
willing consecration. Such marks should we bear. This 
cry of the Apostle was the cry of absolute self devotion, 
the magnificent outburst of a heart filled to the overflow 
with the spirit of impassioned consecration. He has now 
given himself up to his Master without reserve. But this 
yielding of himself is not brought about by force, but 
through affection. It is the result of that master passion, 
love. The love of Christ constrained him, and he got his 
“marks” through love’s devotion. 

III. The marks upon Paul were the marks of faithful 
servitude. Such marks should we have. A slave once car¬ 
ried a secret message written in punctures on the skin of 
his head, which had been shaved bare to receive the writing. 
When the hair was grown again he went unsuspected. The 
person to whom the message was sent, having shaved the 
letter-carrier’s head, read the message. St. Paul carried 
in his body the marks of the Master whom he served. 
The welts made by the Roman lictor’s rods, with which he 
was thrice beaten; the red lines of those almost two hun¬ 
dred stripes which had been laid on him by the Jews, and 
the scars left by the stones which had bruised and beaten 
him down, so that he was left for dead; these “mark<- of 
the Lord Jesus” he carried with him, the proofs as to whose 
he was and whom he served. Let us not fail to win them, 
or shrink from wearing some marks of faithful servitude 
for Christ. 

IV. The marks upon Paul were the marks of honor¬ 
able scars gained in the conflict. Such marks should we 
bear. As Pericles said: “It is not gold, precious stones, 
statues, that adorn a soldier, but a torn buckler, a cracked 
helmet, a scarred face.” The marks gotten in conflict for 
Christ are honorable marks. As it is a glory to a soldier to 
have received many wounds and to have many scars gotten 


THE BRANDS OF CHRIST 


92 

in the defence of his country, so it is a glory for the Chris¬ 
tian soldier to have the marks of the Lord Jesus in his 
body, as of weariness and wounds and scourges and im¬ 
prisonments for the truth. 

Let us remember that entire consecration is the best, 
to ask Christ to put his brand on us anew, and that there 
is great reward for bearing the marks of the Lord Jesus. 

Prayer: “Father, with thankful and humble hearts we 
appear before thee. We would thank thee for all the ben¬ 
efits that we have received from thy goodness. It is to 
thy blessing we owe what success we have found. Every 
opportunity for doing good; every impulse in the right 
way; each victory we have gained over ourselves; every 
thought of thy presence, O Father; every silent but lov¬ 
ing glance on the example of our Pattern, thy Son our Lord 
—all are alike thy gifts to us. Give us strength and wis¬ 
dom to walk faithfully and joyfully in the way of willing 
obedience to thy laws, and cheerful trust in thy love. The 
best thanksgiving we can offer thee is to live according to 
thy holy will; grant us every day to offer it more per¬ 
fectly, and to grow in the knowledge of thy will and the 
love thereof, for evermore; through Christ, our Lord and 
Saviour. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL 


Motto for the Week: “Not by might, nor by power, but 
by my Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts ” Zech. 4:6. 

Hymn: “Christ for the world we sing” —Samuel Wol¬ 
cott. 

Scripture: Psalm 19:1-14. 

Meditation: THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 

Text: “All the saints salute you, chiefly they that are 
of Caesar's household.” Phil. 4:22. 

Because the world is so large, the population so great, 
and the religion of Christ has not yet become prevalent 
everywhere, many people grow discouraged, and sometimes 
almost lose faith in the power of the Gospel. But this feel¬ 
ing is both wrong and without reason. One person’s life 
is short and one person’s range of vision is narrow. The 
Gospel’s progress is really steady and strong and mighty. 
We have abundant reasons for faith in it, much more than 
Paul had in his day. Yet how marked was his confidence. 
It is refreshing to our faith to hear him, away back in the 
beginning of the Church’s history, exclaiming, “So, as much 
as in me is, I am ready to preach the Gospel to you that 
are in Rome also; for I am not ashamed of the Gospel of 
Christ.” Paul went to Rome, preached the Gospel, and 
even while in prison there won trophies for Christ. Yes. 
he even won them in Caesar’s household, from his kindred 
or his royal guard or from among those employed in some 
other sort of service around the palace. And they were so 

93 


94 


THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL 


won that love for other Christians far away leaped the seas 
and sent them a greeting of affectionate regard. “All the 
saints salute you, chiefly they that are of Caesar’s house¬ 
hold.” 

Let this fact, that there were saints in Caesar’s house¬ 
hold, serve to suggest some thoughts concerning this Gos¬ 
pel Paul had to preach. 

I. The audacity of the Gospel. Think of the audacity 
of the Gospel; that it should go right into the heart of the 
citadel of Satan—into Caesar’s household! It seemed an 
audacious thing that the Gospel should try to make its way 
at all in Rome. Rome! proud, intelligent, heartless, lust¬ 
ful, wicked Rome! “As much as in me is I am ready to 
preach the Gospel to you that are at Rome also!” The very 
mention of that supremely wicked city puts the heroic into 
these words of the Apostle. The Gospel Paul had to preach 
was a Gospel that ran counter to all the exalted and lordly 
feelings of Rome—to the Roman pride of power. Think you, 
then, that Paul had nothing to fear with his Gospel of hu¬ 
mility to preach? And took it no bravery to preach it? 

Not only so, but the Gospel which Paul had was in its 
very nature aggressive. It was a system of practice and 
belief not in the passive, but in the active voice, imperative 
mode. It did not wait for resistance or provocation. It 
delayed for no challenge. It was in open opposition to, and 
proposed to conquer wrong everywhere, smiting it to the 
ground. Then, too, Rome was noted not alone for its pride 
of power, but for its pride of intellect as well. The Gospel 
Paul had was “to the Jews a stumbling block and to the 
Greeks foolishness.” Paul knew that it was “not of men’s 
wisdom or enticing words.” Yet he also knew that the mo¬ 
ment it detected intellectual arrogance and pride it would 
meet it in mortal combat, even though it rested upon the 


THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL 


95 


luxury of imperial patronage and established its strong¬ 
holds within the very shadow of Caesar’s palace. 

But this is not all. We are to add to it an understand¬ 
ing of the intolerance of Rome,—intolerance toward other 
religions. The Romans had an established religion of their 
own, in which Jupiter and Juno and Cupid and Mars and 
Mercury, all the gods of mythology, were deemed the 
deities for human souls to reverence. They hated the re¬ 
ligion of the Jews. Christianity was likely to have still 
stronger opposition. Not only so, but the then reigning 
Caesar was the worst of all men. He was such a man as 
cannot be described. The strongest invective has never been 
able to do his execrable character justice. He was a very 
monster of iniquity; burner of the city; burner of Chris¬ 
tians ; murderer of his mother; slayer of his wives; a 
bloody, conscienceless, diabolical tyrant. He was Nero! 
Nero was the reigning Caesar, the same Nero who after¬ 
wards, as history says, gave Paul a crown of martyrdom 
by ordering his head severed from his body, just outside 
the walls of Rome on the road as you go to Ostia. Now, 
in the face of Roman pride of power; in the face of Roman 
pride of intellect; in the face of Roman religious intol¬ 
erance; in the face of Roman wicked practices to be re¬ 
buked, and in the face of such a ruling power as Nero and 
his underlings, truly, did it not mean something for Paul 
to say, as he did, “As much as in me is I am ready to 
preach the Gospel to you that are in Rome also; for I am 
not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ”? And was there 
not audacity in a Gospel that would even hope to make 
converts within the very precincts of the palace? 

II. Consider, secondly, the power of the Gospel, that it 
could win its trophies there, in Caesar’s household. Paul 
went right into the very heart of Rome, a prisoner at that, 
and won his trophies for the cross in the most hopeless 


96 


THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL 


spot in all the world. The court of Caesar seemed like 
the very capital throne of Satan. Yet, you will recall, right 
here it was that Paul planted the truth, established a 
church, won no mean following to Christ, so that soon 
afterwards, in writing from Rome this epistle to the Phil- 
lippian church, he could use the words: “All the saints 
salute you, chiefly they that are of Caesar’s household.” 
Think of it! right in that awful Caesar’s household those 
trophies had been won, and so won that their love reached 
clear over the sea to greet Christian brethren in Phillippi 
they had never seen. Paul was ready and not ashamed 
to preach the Gospel in Rome, because, as he said, he had 
found out that the Gospel is “power”—“the power of God 
unto salvation.” He believed in the Gospel and he believed 
in its Author—Christ. The most potent force known to 
science is dynamite, in its various forms. But Paul had 
discovered a dynamite long before we did. For this is 
the very word used here in the Greek. This Gospel, he 
tells us is the very dynamite of God. He believed in it as 
mighty to the blowing down of delusions and the blowing 
up of all the strong fortresses of evil. “The weapons of 
our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to 
the pulling down of strongholds.” Paul had found that 
the Gospel was power. And those who are opposing it 
today will find the same thing. The Gospel is love. But 
love is a tremendous power, and turns the world upside 
down. 

III. Notice, thirdly, the vitality of the Gospel, that it 
should live and thrive there, in Caesar’s household. Some 
of us think our circumstances are hard and excuse our¬ 
selves for not being better Christians on the ground of the 
difficulties of our situation. But let us think of these 
Christians in Caesar’s household, and be ashamed of our 
lack of fidelity. No amount of opposition overcame them. 


THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL 


97 


They were Christians in spite of all the evil conditions we 
have mentioned. But in the fact that they were let us find 
reasons for faith. The Gospel is a thing of wonderful 
vitality. It lives and thrives—sometimes seeming to live 
and thrive better—under persecution. The Gospel has the 
audacity to go anywhere. It has the power to win souls 
anywhere. It has the vitality to live and thrive anywhere. 
Let us believe in it. In spite of all opposition and seem¬ 
ing defeat it is yet to take all people—heathen people, 
Christian people, all people—and deliver them from the 
power of darkness and translate them into the Kingdom of 
Christ. Let us keep in good hope and good heart, and 
watch and work and pray for the time when it shall be 
acknowledged by every soul in every land. For that day 
will surely come. God speed the day! 

Prayer: “Our Father, we thank thee that we have a 
place in thy kingdom and are permitted to work for its ad¬ 
vancement. We thank thee that we have the Gospel and 
that our lives have been blessed by it. Help us to do our 
part to send the Gospel to the portions of the world to which 
it has not yet gone. Bless the missionaries in foreign lands. 
Prepare the way for them and give them favor among the 
people. May their influence in behalf of thy kingdom re¬ 
ceive thy help and thy favor and may the Master’s com¬ 
mand be obeyed until all lands have heard the story of re¬ 
deeming grace. We ask in Christ’s name. Amen.” 

Offer the Lords Prayer in unison. 


FAG-END RELIGION 


Motto for the Week: “Lord, to whom shall we go? 
Thou hast the words of eternal life .” John 6:68. 

Hymn: “Lord, I am thine, entirely thine .”—Samuel 
Davies. 

Scripture: Galatians 5 :1-26. 

Meditation: FAG-END RELIGION. 

Text: “I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mer¬ 
cies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, 
holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable serv¬ 
ice.” Rom. 12:1.. 

We have read of two young men, high-minded, manly, 
and intimate friends, who enlisted together in the army. 
One of them, an earnest and devoted Christian, often urged 
his friend to yield his heart and life to Christ. But the 
friend put him off from time to time. In a bloody battle 
the friend was sorely wounded. The surgeon who came 
to him at the temporary hospital told him that he had at 
most only a few days to live. I am too much of a man 
to fling the fag-end of my life in the face of the Almighty!” 

The young man was wrong, and had a wrong idea of 
what God would have of him. The only right thing was to 
yield himself at once, penitent for past delay, to the Saviour 
who was waiting, longing to be gracious, and to give him a 
blessed hope of eternal life. 

While this is true, yet there was a certain sense of jus¬ 
tice in the young man’s attitude. God was not waiting to 

98 


FAG-END RELIGION 


99 


be just, but waiting to be gracious. Yet, we ought to be 
impressed with our meanness when we deliberately plan 
to give only the fag-end of our lives to God. There are a 
good many people who really wish to get to heaven, who 
intend to attend to the matter by and by. But they plan 
to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season first. It is true 
that the Christian life is the happiest life, that “Godliness 
is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that 
now is, and of that which is to come,” but these people do 
not realize it, and so plan to give God only the fag-end of 
their lives,—of time, and thought, and energy, and service. 
They intend to give that, for the sake of safety. But they 
do not intend to do more than the least that is absolutely 
necessary. 

There is fag-end religion also even in the Church of 
Christ, men and women giving but the fag-end of their 
time and energy and interest and support to the Lord and 
to his work. That is what is the matter with too many of 
our churches, as also with many a Christian who wonders 
why he does not experience more joy and comfort in his 
religion. What is left after all other needs and desires are 
satisfied, or nearly so, is given to the Lord; what is con¬ 
venient for him to do he does, what is convenient for him 
to give, he gives, and nothing more. 

These Christians seems to expect the full reward of 
the redeemed. They are Christians, they would claim, and 
has not the Lord promised to crown them with the rewards 
of heaven? A “mansion in the skies,” not the fag-end of 
heaven, but with a reward equal with the best? Yet, they 
act as if the work of the Lord here on earth can have no 
claim upon them which they are bound to respect. So 
when time, or thought, or service, or gifts are asked of 
them they begin at once to make excuse. The simple fact 
is, and there is no wisdom in giving it a better name, that 



100 


FAG-END RELIGION 


their religion is just fag-end religion. They do not pre¬ 
sent themselves living sacrifices unto God. They do not 
regard this as their reasonable service. They are not out 
and out, through and through Christians. The great, sad 
question is whether they are really Christians at all. But 
if they are Christians, they are only fag-end Christians. 
If they have any religion, it is only fag-end religion. 

I. Fag-end religion manifests itself in the grudging way 
in which many people give their time and thought to Christ 
and to his cause. They do not put first things first. They 
do not “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteous¬ 
ness.” They do not love Christ for Christ. They do not 
put him first in regard, or even in thought. They think 
of the world first, of money-getting first, of honor-getting 
first, of pleasure-getting first. Their time and thought are 
taken up with these things. If Christ gets any of their 
thought it is the fag-end of their thought. If Christ gets 
any of their time it is the fag-end of their lives. If they 
have any religion it is fag-end religion. That is the best 
that can be said of them or their religion. 

II. Fag-end religion manifests itself also in the grudg¬ 
ing way in which many people give of their means and 
energies to Christ and his cause, or the lack of giving these 
to any appreciable degree. They put energy into their 
business. But they do not put energy into the “King’s 
business,” their “Father’s business.” They put energy into 
their secular profession, as lawyers, doctors, teachers, etc., 
but practically none at all into their profession as Chris¬ 
tians. 

We know a Sunday-school teacher who was gently 
chided for being so frequently absent from her class. But 
she replied: “But, you know, I only have four or five little 
boys!” Four or five little boys! Four or five immortal 
souls entrusted to her care! Why, she was only playing 


FAG-END RELIGION 


IOI 


at Sunday-school keeping, like little girls play with their 
dolls. Who can tell how much depended upon her attitude 
and faithfulness toward those boys? She may have had a 
Knox, a Wesley, a Whitfield, or a Moody among those boys. 
Anyway, she had four or five immortal souls to train for 
eternity. Well she might have enlisted with all her heart 
and power in the work. She did not realize it, but she be¬ 
longed in a class of those who have only fag-end religion. 

The same thought might be applied to the way people 
give to Christ and his cause. Think of the way in which 
men invest capital in worldly schemes and undertakings. 
Do many men invest capital in that way for God? No, 
they give what they can spare without even feeling it. 

III. Fag-end religion reveals itself largely through the 
question of interest and affection. The root of the evil is 
largely in the heart. Some people can be excused from 
giving much time or energy or money to Christ, on the 
ground that they do not have these at their disposal. But 
every one can give love. 

We recall once reading of Ellenthorpe, the hero of the 
Humber, who had rescued many from drowning. He was 
on duty on his ship when a cry was heard, “A child over¬ 
board!” In an instant he was in the sea, and soon both 
were on the deck. Next day the mother took the child up 
to the brave man and said: “This is the gentleman who 
saved you from the sea; what are you going to give him?” 
For a moment the child was speechless, not knowing what 
to answer. But suddenly she put out her hands and said: 
“If you please, I have nothing else, I will give you a kiss.” 
The rough sailor received many valuable presents, but he 
declared that the child’s kiss was more than all else be¬ 
side. Why? Because she had given him all she had—her 
love. 


102 


FAG-END RELIGION 


Oh, fag-end Christians, become aware of your real lack. 
It is a lack of love. Give love and you will give time, and 
thought, and energy, and money—yourself. “I beseech 
you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye 
present your bodies—your whole selves—a living sacrifice, 
holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable serv¬ 
ice.” 

Prayer: “Almighty and most merciful Father, in whom 
we live and move and have our being, to whose tender com¬ 
passion we owe our safety in days past, together with all 
the comforts of this present life, and the hopes of that 
which is to come; we praise thee, O God, our Creator; unto 
thee do we give thanks. O God, our exceeding joy, who 
daily pourest thy benefits upon us. Grant, we beseech 
thee, that Jesus our Lord, the hope of glory, may be 
formed in us, in all humility, meekness, patience, content¬ 
edness, and absolute surrender of our souls and bodies to 
thy holy will and pleasure. Leave us not, nor forsake us, 
O Father, but conduct us safely through all change of our 
conditions here, in an unchangeable love to thee, and in 
holy tranquility of mind in thy love to us, till we come to 
dwell with thee, and rejoice in thee forever. Through 
Christ, we ask. Amen.” 

Offer the Lord's Prayer in unison. 


THE TRUTH LOVINGLY TOLD 


Motto for the Week: “Let the words of my mouth, and 
the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, 0 
Lord, my strength, and my redeemer Psalm 19:14. 

Hymn: “I lay my sins on Jesus —Horatius Bonar. 

Scripture: James 1:19-27. 

Meditation: THE TRUTH LOVINGLY TOLD. 

Text: “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up 
into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ .” 
Eph. 4:15. 

The manner of saying a thing is often of as much im¬ 
portance as the thing said. In other words, the spirit in 
which the truth is spoken is about as important as is the 
utterance of truth at all. Some one has well expressed 
it: “Apples of gold when taken out of their pictures of 
silver, and hurled at your head may become the instru¬ 
ments of great pain.” The question, therefore, of manner, 
in speaking the truth, is always of importance. 

I. Consider, first, some varied ways in which the truth 
may be spoken. One may speak the truth with the view of 
insinuating falsehood. Such an example is evident when 
the Pharisees of old said of Christ, “This man receiveth 
sinners.” They told the truth but insinuated falsehood. 
Then, the truth may be spoken in envy. It was so spoken 
again by the Pharisees when they saw Christ going as a 
guest to the house of Zaccheus, the publican. They mur¬ 
mured, saying, “That he was gone to be guest with a man 

103 


104 


THE TRUTH LOVINGLY TOLD 


that is a sinner.” It was quite true, what they said; but 
it was the truth spoken in envy that the poor outsider was 
to be brought within the fold. Then the truth may be 
spoken in pure malignity. It may be spoken with a definite 
desire to give pain. Some people get a superficial reputa¬ 
tion for honesty through the brutal way in which they 
blurt out uncomfortable truths. Such an one is likely to 
say, “Well, I always call things by their right names. 
There isn’t any hypocrisy about me. If I don’t like a per¬ 
son I let him know it,” and other remarks of that sort. 
Now, such an one is liable to do an enormous amount of 
harm. 

II. Therefore notice, secondly, the duty and wisdom 
of speaking the truth in love. The two things are al¬ 
ways to go together—truth and love. Truth without love 
will fail to do what God meant it for. It will repel instead 
of attract. It is very liable to harm instead of help. The 
fact is that unless we speak the truth in love we are not 
speaking the truth at all. Departure from love will involve 
departure from the truth. Love, affection, is part of the 
truth. With the love left out the truth is robbed of its 
essence and is not truth any longer. 

On the other hand, love without truth is equally danger¬ 
ous, flattering the soul into a false peace and sense of se¬ 
curity from which there can be only a woeful waking. 

It is in combination, only through the union of truth 
and love, that the highest and best, the God-intended re¬ 
sults are brought about. 

Someone has well said: “Truth is the stern hard thing, 
like the bare branches of winter; love is the softener and 
beautifier, like the green foliage on the summer tree. If 
you show that you love people you may tell them truths 
that condemn them, and yet awaken no bitterness; you 


THE TRUTH LOVINGLY TOLD 105 

may show them how wrong they are and only make them 
thankful to you for setting them right.” 

“The portrait is like me, but too good-looking,” was 
the criticism once made to an artist, which called forth the 
significant reply: “It is the truth, lovingly told.” 

Prayer: “O Lord of heaven and earth, we are truly 
sorry for all our misdoings; we utterly renounce whatso¬ 
ever is contrary to thy will, and here devote ourselves en¬ 
tirely to the obedience thereof. Accept, O most merciful 
Father, this renewed dedication which we make of our¬ 
selves, our bodies, souls, and spirits, unto thee. And grant 
that we may be able every day to offer up ourselves more 
sincerely and more cheerfully unto thee; with more pure 
affection, and hearty devotion and ready disposition to thy 
service. Preserve in our minds a grateful sense of thy 
mighty love, that we may follow the doctrine and example 
of thy Son Jesus Christ. Grant that we may be like him, 
pure and undefiled, meek and gentle, peacable and patient, 
contented and thankful. Fulfill unto us all the gracious 
promises that he hath made unto us. Let it be unto thy 
servants according to his word. We. ask all in his name. 
Amen.” 

Unite in the Lord's Prayer. 


SPIRITUAL WITCHCRAFT 


Motto for the Week: “Who loved me, and gave him¬ 
self for me” Gal. 2:20. 

Hymn: “In the cross of Christ I glory ”—Sir John 
Bowring. 

Scripture: Gal. 3:1-29. 

Meditation: SPIRITUAL WITCHCRAFT. 

Text: “O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, 
that ye should not obey the truth?” Gal. 3 :i. 

Paul’s metaphor here used is derived from the popu¬ 
lar belief in the power of the “evil eye,” the word he 
employs referring originally to witchery by spells and in¬ 
cantations. The spiritual life of the Galatian churches 
seemed to Paul as if it had been sucked out of them by the 
baleful glitter of some evil eye. “O foolish Galatians, who 
hath bewitched you?” In these words he represents them 
as enchanted by the arts and snares of their seducing 
teachers, so far deluded as to act very unlike themselves. 
That wherein their folly and infatuation appeared was 
that they did not obey the truth. And several things there 
were that went to manifest and aggravate their folly. One 
of these was that they had had the doctrine of the cross 
plainly preached unto them, while in the sacrament of 
the Lord’s Supper Christ had been “evidently set forth 
as crucified among them.” Another was that they had 
experienced the workings of the Holy Spirit within their 
own souls, some of them even to the extent of being 

106 


SP1RIUAL WITCHCRAFT 


107 

given miraculous powers. He also calls upon them to con¬ 
sider their past and present conduct, and thence to judge 
whether they were not acting very weakly and unreason¬ 
ably now. Lastly, he puts them in mind that they had had 
ministers among them, himself among others, who had 
come with a divine seal and commission, for they had min¬ 
istered the Spirit to them and wrought miracles, and ap¬ 
peals to them whether these had taught them that they 
could be justified by the works of law instead of through 
faith in Christ. He told them plainly that their great lack 
was not of knowledge of the truth, but of obedience to the 
truth they knew. 

I. The enchantment of error. “Who hath bewitched 
you, that ye should not obey the truth?” It had affected 
both their conduct and character. The bewitchment of er¬ 
ror always affects men unfavorably in both these respects. 
They had departed from the truth, relinquished their hold 
on its doctrines, and now these Galatian Christians were 
backsliders, both in heart and life. In doing as they had 
done Paul plainly implies that they had committed very 
great folly. They had gone backward,—back to the slavery 
of the ceremonial law, back to the world, back to fleshly 
lusts back to the service of evil. They were very foolish 
in surrendering what they did. 

II. The fascination of the cross. The fascination of 
the cross should overcome the power of all other fascina¬ 
tions. It should teach us self-denial in opposition to world¬ 
liness, humility as opposed to all personal and intellectual 
pride, steadfastness in truth in the place of all love of 
novelty in doctrine, and submission to the will of God. The 
cross should exercise a magic charm over us and prevent 
or annul the power of all other fascinations. 

Let us live within the circle of the subtle influence of 
the cross. 


io8 


SPIRITUAL WITCHCRAFT 


“Jesus keep me near the cross, 

Bring its scenes before me; 

Help me walk from day to day 
With its shadow o’er me.” 

Prayer: “Almighty God, if the eyes of our love may 
catch but one sight of thy beauty our souls shall be en¬ 
larged and comforted. We know thee in the ages, in great 
breadths of history, in the coming and going of generations; 
but we want to know thee more closely and tenderly, and 
say to thee, My God and my Father’s God! If we might 
say this, and feel it all; in and through the power and the 
grace of Christ, we might shake off the universe itself, 
and come before thee with hymns that are beyond all 
words. Now and again dost lift us up with a great lifting; 
the hills are nothing, the constellations do not stop our 
sight, we see thee, and the sight makes us glad. May we 
have some such vision now! Thou knowest the wound¬ 
ing of our heart, the bitterness of our spirit is known to 
thy love; thou wilt not be too hard upon us, for what is 
our weakness to thy strength, thou infinite One and Eter¬ 
nal. It would be thy love now, as it ever has, to stoop to 
us and take us up and warm us at the fire of thine own 
heart. Accept our love and adoration we pray thee, through 
Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


APPEARANCE AND REALITY 


Motto for the Week: “Behold, thou desirest truth in 
the inward parts” Ps. 51:6. 

Hymn: “Dare to do right, dare to be true” —G. Lan¬ 
sing Taylor. 

Scripture: James 1:16-27. 

Meditation: APPEARANCE AND REALITY . 

Text: “And King Rehoboam made in their stead bra¬ 
zen shields, and committed them unto the hands of the 
chief of the guard,” etc. I Kings 14:27, 28. 

Rehoboam, when Shishak, king of Egypt, had carried 
away the treasures of the temple and the shields of pure 
gold which Solomon had made, made him brazen shields 
to take their place. He could no longer display the glitter¬ 
ing shields of gold on state occasions, but he wanted to 
seem royal anyway. So he practiced a sort of deception 
upon himself and upon others. He kept up the appearance 
of state by causing his armor-bearer to carry before him 
the cheap brazen shields. “Keeping up apearances” is a 
species of hypocrisy. Sometimes there is a great difference 
between appearance and reality. It was a caution we would 
all do well to heed, that which was uttered by Christ when 
lie said: “Judge not according to the appearance.” 

We have seen it stated that the last letter written by the 
late Professor R. A. Proctor begins with these words: 
“ ‘Seeing is believing,’ says the old proverb; but ‘seeing is 
deceiving’ would be nearer the mark. We are deceived al- 
s 109 


iio 


APPEARANCE AND REALITY 


most as often, perhaps quite as often as not by what we 
see.” How often is truth the reverse of appearance. How 
frequently is seeing deceiving. All is not gold that glitters. 
Not all bright shields are gold shields. “Judge not accord¬ 
ing to appearance.” 

I. This is a good exhortation for us to heed in our con¬ 
tact with the natural world. How often in the world of 
nature seeing is deceiving. We look at the sun and it seems 
infinitely smaller than the world we live on. We look out 
upon the landscape and not far in the distance the sky 
seems to touch the ground. This earth seems to be a flat 
surface, not a round ball. It seems to be stationary, not 
whirling around in space. The sun seems to rise every 
morning and set every evening. The truth in all these cases 
is exactly the reverse of the appearance. Seeing is deceiv¬ 
ing. 

II. This is a good exhortation for us to heed in our 
estimation of the wisdom of men. Bacon, in his essay on 
Seeming Wise, has shown the folly of judging men’s wis¬ 
dom by appearances. There are many people who want 
to seem wiser than they are. Scholars in our day schools, 
and Sunday-schools are often afraid to answer a teacher 
with a confession of ignorance. And “children of a larger 
growth,” to avoid the mortification of saying, “I don’t 
know,” look wise. This is a sort of playing the scholar, 
lest the admission of ignorance would make us seem to 
be dullards. Rehoboam, when he couldn’t display the real 
thing, the glittering shields of gold upon occasion, wanted 
to seem royal anyway, and so cut a very sorry figure be¬ 
hind his armor-bearer, who went before him with brazen 
ones. Using “brass” for keeping up appearances seems 
thus to have had an early beginning. Quite a good many 
people think that to “look wise,” or in some way to give 


APPEARANCE AND REALITY 


hi 


the impression that they have real scholarship is about as 
good as the “real thing.” 

There is an ancient fable which tells of a jackdaw who 
put peacock feathers in his tail, and, alighting among a 
flock of his kind, thought to lord it among them as a bird 
of superior gifts. But none were deceived, for, despite his 
borrowed plumes, they knew he was nothing more nor less 
than a poor simple daw. But jackdaws are not the only 
creatures that have tried to mask under borrowed plumage. 
“Judge not according to the appearance.” Do not take 
brass shields for gold. 

III. This is a good exhortation for us to heed in our 
estimation of the happiness of those who do wickedly. 
“Judge not by the appearance.” Do not mistake the brass 
shield for the gold shield. Perhaps the persons you think 
of are rich with ill-gotten gains. They may give them¬ 
selves up to rounds of pleasure and the dissipations of 
society, They seem to be very happy. But if the individual 
is doing wrong he is not happy. He may appear that way, 
but it is only appearance. There are hours when you do not 
see him, hours when the smile is absent and his heart is 
gloomy as the tomb. Conscience troubles him. Wicked 
people may seem to be happy, but deep down in their hearts 
they are not happy. The truth is the reverse of appearance. 
Seeing is deceiving. 

IV. This is a good exhortation for us to heed in esti¬ 
mating men’s success or failure in life. “Judge not by the 
appearance.” Do not mistake the brass shields for gold 
ones. Many a man has gone down in the battle of life, a 
business failure, ambition thwarted, hopes blasted. The 
merciless crowds jeer at him and trample upon him and 
cry, “Failure! Failure!” while the great God who sees be¬ 
yond the outward appearance bids the recording angel to 


112 


APPEARANCE AND REALITY 


write upon the fallen man’s life in letters of gold that 
shall outshine and outlast the stars: “Sublime success!” 

I believe it was the Duke of Wellington who said: 
“When my diary is published, many statues will come 
down.” He had defeated Napoleon at Waterloo. Immedi¬ 
ately he sees soldiers, officers and others eagerly claiming 
honors to which they were not entitled. They seem to be 
heroes. The public were deceived, and erected statues to 
their honor. The Iron Duke allows this to go on, but 
quietly says: “When my diary appears, when the real facts 
are stated, these men will not be looked upon as such bril¬ 
liant successes—many statues will come down.” The world 
today calls many a man a success whom the final judgment 
will brand the most abject failure. You see statues erected 
in praise of those who have become rich by wrong doing, 
or who have attained a high office by lying and fraud. But, 
as the Duke of Wellington said, “Wait.” When heaven’s 
books are opened and the real truth is proclaimed in thunder 
tones from the throne which sees through all pretense 
“many statues will come down.” As the world judges suc¬ 
cess is often failure, and failure success. 

V. This is a good exhortation for us to heed in forming 
estimates of men’s characters. “Judge not by the appear¬ 
ance.” Do not mistake brass for gold. We are not much 
given to quotations from dead languages, for we are of 
the same mind as Paul, that all preachers and writers should 
preach and write in the tongue of the people. But there 
are two Latin words, sine cera, to which we would like to 
call attention. They are the words from which our Eng¬ 
lish word sincere or sincerity is derived. The words liter¬ 
ally mean “without wax,” as when a piece of furniture is 
cut out of the solid wood; neither worm-eaten or defective, 
so that no holes must be filled with wax and then varnished 
over to give a false appearance of soundness, but sound 


APPEARANCE AND REALITY 


ii3 

from surface to core. This is to be sincere. As in the 
wood, so in the man—his sincerity is the source of his 
strength. How many beautifully varnished characters 
break under the trial-strain of temptation, just because they 
are not sincere. Hypocrites are the opposite of sincere peo¬ 
ple. “J U( ige not by the appearance.” A hypocrite is an 
actor. He gets behind the brass shield on purpose to make 
you think he carries one of gold. 

There are religious hypocrites as well as other sorts. 
Let Tennyson describe one for us: 

“With all his conscience and with one eye askew, 

So false he partly took himself for true; 

Whose pious talk,, when most his heart was dry, 

Made wet the crafty crow’s-foot round his eye; 

Who never naming God except for gain, 

So never took that useful name in vain; 

Made him his cat’s-paw, and the Cross his stool, 

And Christ his bait to trap his dupe and fool; 

Nor deeds of gift, but gifts of grace, he forged, 

And, snake-like, slimed his victim ere he gorged; 

And oft at Bible-meetings, o’er the rest 
Arising, did his holy, oily, best.” 

In every walk in life look out for the men who carry 
brass shields, trying to make you think they are gold. 
Judge not by the outward appearance. 

Prayer: “Rest upon us, O Spirit of love, and chase 
all anger, envy, and bitter grudges from our souls. Be 
our Comforter in trial, when the billows go over our heads; 
be our Strength in the hours of weakness, and help us to 
control the desires of the flesh. Let us grow in faith and 
love, in hope, patience, and humility. Our hearts lie open 
before thee; enter now with thy rich gifts, strengthen, es¬ 
tablish, settle them. Dwell in them and make them thy 
temple, so shall we have the pledge of our sonship, and of 
our salvation; through Christ, our Lord, we ask. Amen.” 

Offer the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


THE SUPREME MOTIVE 


Motto for the Week: “The love of Christ constraineth 
us.” 2 Cor. 5 114. 

Hymn: “O love that wilt not let me go.” —C. Mathe- 
son. 

Scripture: Mark 10:13-31. 

Meditation: THE SUPREME MOTIVE. 

Text: “ For my sake.” Mark 10:29. 

The real lack of the young ruler was love. As some 
one has said: “How seldom is Jesus sought for Jesus.” 
“For Christ’s sake” is the real Christian motive. 

I. “For His sake” is back of all true obedience. It is 
not hard to do the wishes of one we love. Some people 
think of religion as a hard, distasteful service. But such 
know nothing of the delight of being love-impelled. Christ 
is the Christian’s friend. God is his heavenly Father. The 
Holy Spirit is his Companion and Comforter. The Bride’s 
wishes are not bondage to her husband, nor the husband’s 
to his bride. So do we obey God out of love. Obedience 
becomes a delight because the heart is in it. 

II. “For His sake” is back of the Christian’s aspirations 
toward holiness. Having the love of such a Saviour and 
Friend we aspire to be more worthy of His love—of the 
love of one so pure and holy. Love kindles an ambition to 
be worthy of love. The transforming power of a worthy 
love has often been felt and seen. “I had a friend,” was 
counted by one as sufficient explanation for his growth in 

114 


THE SUPREME MOTIVE 


US 

character and success. When we become conscious that we 
have Christ for our friend, the motive “for His sake” has 
a mighty transforming power. 

III. “For His sake” is back of each disciple’s activity 
in Christian work. “For my sake, and the gospel’s,” is 
the desire of Christ which rings in the Christian’s ears. 
For Jesus’ sake, because it is Jesus, and for the gospel’s 
sake, because it is his gospel; here is discovered the motive 
which has impelled so many of Christ’s disciples to heroic 
effort in his cause. Under this impulse are missions 
started, do missionaries go, is saving work carried on in 
every part of the world,—for people high up or low down. 

IV. “For His sake” is back of each disciple’s patience 
in suffering. We know that he is love and that all his 
plans for us are love-prompted. We know that he is 
wise. He knows the end from the beginning and all his 
ways for us are wisely directed. We know that he is in¬ 
finitely strong and will put underneath us his everlasting 
arms. We, therefore, repose in his love, trust to his in¬ 
finite wisdom, and rest for support on his hands. How 
many of the sick, the bereaved, the poor, the lonely, the 
overworked, the persecuted, the misunderstood have been 
borne up under the impulse of this supreme motive: It is 
the Lord’s will. His will concerning me is love. I can 
well afford to trust him. I will bear patiently what he 
sends, “for his dear sake.” 

V. “For His sake” is also back of all Christian sacri¬ 
fice. It is love that inspires to all real sacrifice. “For His 
sake” money is given to build churches, send missionaries, 
support hospitals among the heathen. “For His sake” 
preachers give their time to preaching and teachers to teach¬ 
ing. “For His sake” moves the needle-woman as she sews 
night and day to support another missionary. “For His 
sake” the young girl denies herself a coveted pleasure that 


ii6 


THE SUPREME MOTIVE 


she may give to Christ's cause. “For His sake” men, women 
and children, give, work, plan, go, make sacrifices will¬ 
ingly for Christ and his work in the world. 

This motive has not yet full sway in the world, or in 
our hearts. But it is the one motive underlying all our 
hope for redeeming this world from the hands of Satan 
and laying it as a trophy at our Saviour’s feet. Let us 
make it our supreme motive, controlling our thoughts and 
words and all our acts. 

Prayer: “Father in heaven, we feel that we are made 
for thee and cannot rest until we are folded in thine ever¬ 
lasting arm. Draw us to thyself and tell us thy love. May 
we have such hearts as will be willing and quick to hear 
thee. The world is thundering around us, but through all 
its noise and confusion may we be able to discern the ac¬ 
cents of thy voice. Purify us from earthiness and sin that 
our spirits may blend with thine in blessed fellowship. May 
we dwell so close to thee that the light of thy face shall 
stream through us and transfigure us. Calm all our 
anxious thoughts and fill us with serenity and peace. Then 
may we come down from the mount of transfiguration to 
touch the great troubled world with healing hands. In 
sympathy with it and in service and sacrifice for it may we 
find our own relief and health and strength and joy. And 
this we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


SEASONABLE SPEECH 

Motto for the Week: “Let your speech he always zvith 
grace, seasoned with salt ” Phil. 4:6. 

Hymn: “Kind words can never die —Miss. Hutchin¬ 
son. 

Scripture: James 3:1-18. 

Meditation: SEASONABLE SPEECH. 

Text: “A word spoken in due season, how good it is A 
Prov. 15:23. 

There are a few over-pious and over-talkative Chris¬ 
tians, but the being too reticent, too reluctant about speak¬ 
ing in the interests of Christ and of His kingdom, is a 
much more prevalent fault. It is difficult to account for 
this condition of things. There is no hesitation among 
us about speaking of other things we account good. We 
will commend our physician, tell of the pleasant things in 
art or in nature we have discovered, speak of our social 
joys, and of our business prospects or hopes; but how 
dumb we become the moment the matter about which we 
ought to speak has anything to do concerning religion or 
religious hopes or fears, consolation, or duties. Yet there 
is no region in which “a word in season” can prove more 
truly an apple of gold in a picture of silver. “A word in 
due season, how good it is!” 

I. A word of comfort. Is it not true that we too care¬ 
fully seal up our lips when our friends are in trouble and 
sorrow? To be sure, we have no right ruthlessly to in- 

117 


SEASONABLE SPEECH 


118 

trude or thoughtlessly to thrust upon the troubled our at¬ 
tentions. But where one heart is bleeding from such lack 
of wisdom and tact, a hundred are bleeding for the lack of 
the good word in season that ought to be spoken. 

At the first almost overwhelming suddenness and aw¬ 
fulness of one’s grief, silence on the part of friends may be 
golden; but continued silence only dams up the flow of the 
soul and drowns it in the backwaters of grief. A kind 
word of sympathy spoken in due season how good it is! 
What a relief, what a source of comfort, what an uplifting 
and inspiring thing it can be! 

II. A word of encouragement. We can have no idea, 
unless we stop and think, how really many people there are 
in this world in need of encouragement. People bear their 
burdens, do their work, work out their life-problems almost 
alone. Children try to be good, but no one seems to know 
if or notice it, or to speak a single word of appreciation or 
encouragement. A young boy whose heart was hungry for 
such a word said to his father, “Papa, you often scold me 
and tell me when I do wrong, and I am sure I must de¬ 
serve it; but, Papa, why do you not sometimes tell me when 
I do please you, and do what you think I ought?” 

Another boy we know of told his father of some good 
feat he had accomplished. The father heard the account in 
silence, but the boy broke in: “Why don’t you say 
Whopee’?” 

But boys and girls,—the children,—are not the only peo¬ 
ple who are hungry for a word of encouragement. Watch 
for chances, and among the young and old, the rich and 
poor, among people of all classes and conditions, among 
even your neighbors and most intimate friends and asso¬ 
ciates,—yes, in your own family circle,—you may find those 
in need of and who will greatly appreciate and be inspired 
by a word of encouragement. They will go on their way 


SEASONABLE SPEECH 


119 

rejoicing, feeling, if not saying, “A word of encourage¬ 
ment spoken in due season, how good it is!” 

III. A word of warning. A word of warning may be 
as faithful and full of love as a word of comfort or of 
encouragement, and just as much needed. The warnings 
of the Bible are all as truly love-prompted as the wooings 
are. 

A young man who had been an active Christian grew 
cold, and began to neglect the church and his spiritual 
duties. Happening to say, in casual remark to a friend, 
something about the time of day, and adding that his watch 
had been losing time lately, that friend, with an earnest look 
on his face, said: “Have not you been losing time lately?” 
That was all the friend said, but the reference was under¬ 
stood, and the young man afterwards testified that it was 
a good word of warning reproof, spoken in due season, and 
that it was most wholesome and good for him. 

IV. A word of wooing. Winning souls is a high art. 
Nothing within the compass of human endeavor can be 
compared with it in grandeur of object or remunerative 
result. And yet there is no other duty, perhaps, from 
which the average Christian so instinctively shrinks and 
whose neglect is so widely prevalent. One reason may be 
that we do not apprehend the simplicity of our opportu¬ 
nities ; but another reason certainly is that we fail to meas¬ 
ure rightly the value of just “a word in season.” 

Prayer: “Almighty God, we come to the Saviour’s 
Cross confessing our sin and seeking pardon there. Spare 
thine anger; loose not against us the bolts of thy wrath, but 
take us into thy great compassion and sustain us daily by 
thy tender mercy. For all the joys that come to us we 
bless thee. For all the little surprises of love that make 
the day glad; for friendly letters, and loving messages and 


120 


SEASONABLE SPEECH 


graspings of the hand that mean trust and grace; for all 
encouragement that makes us more hopeful in the time of 
difficulty we bless thee, and we regard them as hints of 
thine own inspiration and daily benediction. Strengthen 
us through the days we have yet to live; show to us the 
littleness of earth, and the magnitude of the heaven to 
which we are hastening. We ask through Christ. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


GIVING IS GETTING 


Motto for the Week: “ Honor the Lord with thy sub¬ 
stance.” Prov. 3:9. 

Hymn: “Take my life and let it be.” —Havergal. 

Scripture: Phil. 3 :i-i6.* 

Meditation: GIVING IS GETTING. 

Text: (( The liberal soul shall be made fat; and he that 
watereth shall be watered also himself.” Prov. 11:25. 

“Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, 
pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall 
men give unto your bosom. For with the same measure 
that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.” 
Luke 6:38. 

Definitely and plainly do these verses, one from the Old 
Testament and one from the New, tell us the results of lib¬ 
erality. We do not believe these verses as we should, nor 
act upon them as we should. 

“We might all do more than we have done, 

And not be a whit the worse; 

It never was loving that emptied the heart, 

Nor giving that emptied the purse.” 

I. Giving enlarges the man. 

There is a ditty we have somewhere heard that begins 
thus: 

“There was a little man 
And he had a little soul.” 

The reference is not to the physical size of a man. There 

121 


122 


GIVING IS GETTING 


are far too many Christians who are little men and have 
little souls, for which the sole reason is that they have 
permitted the grace of liberality to be nipped from their 
characters. They have been held back and stunted in the 
same way that our Japanese neighbors make dwarfed trees 
—curiosity trees. The causes of smallness can be included 
under two facts, the nipping off process, and the repression 
through lack of soil and nourishment. Whether we have 
little money or much we all need to cultivate the grace of 
liberality, if for no other reason to prevent ourselves from 
becoming “small.” 

II. Giving pays in kind. 

Those who are familiar with Bunyan’s “Pilgrim’s Prog¬ 
ress” will recall that, when the little company under the 
lead of Great-heart were entertained at the house of Gaius, 
there was a good deal of innocent hilarity at the dinner 
table. The travelers were tired; their appetites were keen ; 
and so much comfort and so much rest, coming at once, put 
them in the best of spirits. 

After a few old-fashioned jokes, and sage attempts at 
pleasantry, good Mr. Honest gravely announced his inten¬ 
tion of propounding a riddle. They were very merry at 
this time, but of course quite well in hand, and they waited 
with much respect for the old gentleman’s effort. He put 
it in quaint rhyme thus: 

“A man there was, though some did count him mad, 

The more he cast away the more he had.” 

Their most respected host, Greatheart, understood at 
once that the puzzle was aimed at him, and that every¬ 
body lingered anxiously for his reply. He paused a while, 
however, but whether to guess the answer or to frame the 
couplet into which he put it, we are not informed. It is 
not everybody in this world who can make poetry to order. 
But Gaius finally offered this solution: 


GIVING IS GETTING 


123 


“He who bestows his goods upon the poor; 

Shall have as much again, and ten times more.” 

At this juncture, one of Christiana’s boys impulsively 
broke in: “I dare say, sir, I did not think you could have 
found it out.” The genial old gentleman answered: “I 
have been trained up in this way a great while; nothing 
teaches like experience; I have learned of my Lord to be 
kind, and have ever found that I gained thereby.” Then 
he went on to clinch his remark with an apposite verse from 
Scripture: “There is that scattereth, yet increaseth, and 
there is what withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth 
to poverty.” 

It is true, the annunciation of old Honest’s riddle. The 
more we cast away the more we have. The poor people of 
Glasgow, Scotland, used to say, that “Daniel Dale gave 
his money by shovelfuls, and God Almighty shoveled it 
back again.” God’s shovel was the largest. 

Giving is getting. This principle is true in many depart¬ 
ments of life. Bodily strength comes from its expenditure, 
not from its hoarding. Every wise use of a muscle adds 
to the power of that muscle. An arm carried in a sling 
for its preservation, stiffens and withers. An arm which 
swings a great hammer, takes on largeness and vigor with 
every generous sweep through the air. Keenness of sight 
and quickness of hearing come from the constant taxing of 
eye and ear, not from their shielding. An Arab of the 
desert can see and hear with ten times the acuteness and 
discrimination of a monk of the convent; because the one 
has kept in play these senses which the other permitted to 
remain inactive. When bodily strength of life seems fail¬ 
ing, the truest way of its regaining is often by its increasing 
outlay. It is use, not the possession of any material treasure 
that gives it the highest value. Merely to have it bears 
no comparison in pleasureableness with its right employ- 


GIVING IS GETTING 


124 


ment. Well filled library shelves are of no benefit to their 
owner so long as the books remain unopened. But the best 
volume on those shelves would have an added value to its 
owner if it were “read to pieces/' as one might say. Money 
gathered and kept for its own sake increases the discon¬ 
tent and cravings of its holder; while money sought and 
handled for its beneficent uses, gives pleasure and satis¬ 
faction to him who employs it. 

Give. Give liberally. Give gladly. Give largely. 

“For the heart grows rich in giving; 

All its wealth is living grain; 

Seeds which mildew in the garner, 

Scattered, fill with gold the plain." 

Prayer: “O Lord God, our Father, we praise and bless 
thy name for mercies innumerable; for life, for peace, for 
health, for safety, for home, for food, for clothing, for 
friends, for joy, for purpose to do right, for sleep that rests, 
for opportunity, and for all that makes us what we are 
from day to day. We confess our unworthiness of all, and 
ask thee to make us nobler, truer, stronger. Temptation 
is often fierce. We yield too many times, and sometimes 
when we fain would not. Help us to remember our prone¬ 
ness to sin and thy ever present power to aid. 

We beseech thee bless us in the work we do from day 
to day. We consecrate to thee our power to work and ask 
thee to accept us in our devotion of all we are to thee. Bless 
all who work for thee in any way and wherever they may 
be. Hear us, O Lord, and direct us ever to Thy glory and 
for thy great name’s sake. Amen.” 

Repeat the Lord’s Prayer in unison. * 


THE MINISTRY OF CHILDREN 


Motto for the Week: “Take this child away and nurse 
it for me and I will give thee thy wages” Ex. 2 :g.- 

Hymn: “I think when I read that sweet story of old .” 
—J. Luke. Or, “There’s a Friend for little children .”— 
A. Midlane. 

Scripture: Matt. 19:13-30. 

Meditation: THE MINISTRY OF CHILDREN . 

Text: “And a little child shall lead them.” Isa. 11:6. 

Quite commonly throughout Christian lands Children’s 
Day is celebrated on the second Sunday in June. It is a 
glad day, full of the odor of flowers, the singing of birds 
and the sweet sound of the voices of innumerable children. 
It is also a day full of suggestive instruction for old and 
young alike. It will be well if in our homes at this time 
we speak of the children, confer in regard to their interests, 
pray for God’s blessings upon them, and, as older people, 
open our hearts to the lessons we may learn from them. 

God has many ministers besides those that bear that 
distinctive name. The babbling brook, the deep blue sea, 
the starry firmament, the many-tinted flowers of the field, 
the birds of the air, all speak to our hearts about the glory 
and majesty, the power and the love of God. Children, 
too, are his “ministers,” and it is especially of them we 
will now think. Children teach us many lessons in many 
ways and influence us greatly. 

125 


126 


THE MINISTRY OF CHILDREN 


I. They purify. There is a sweet fragrance streaming 
forth from the life of every little child, which makes us 
older people long to get back to the sweetness, the sim¬ 
plicity, the teachableness, the purity of our days of early 
youth and childhood. They preach to us, not so much by 
their lips as by their innocence. 

II. They elevate. Children appeal to the highest and 
best instincts of our nature. They take our thoughts away 
from things sordid or low, and lift us to high thinking and 
noble acting. 

III. They stir. They arouse our laggard wills and 
move us to better living. They make us careful of con¬ 
duct that is likely to be reproduced in them, and stimulate 
our finer qualities. They inspire us with hope, rouse us 
to wholesome sacrifice, impel us to industry and set us 
forward in ways of physical, moral and spiritual well be¬ 
ing. 

IV. They instruct. God speaks to us through them. 
He taught Eli by young Samuel. He used the little boy 
to instruct the aged priest. And has not God, in like man¬ 
ner, often spoken since Eli’s days to those of riper years 
through the lips of children? He has manifested himself 
through a child’s prayers, through a child’s questions, 
through a child’s piety, through a child’s example. He 
has taken infantile lips and filled them with strange and 
startling messages from himself. 

V. They console. No one can over-estimate the 
amount of blessing children have brought to hearts and 
homes in the way of taking our minds off our troubles 
and giving the cheer and consolation of a sweet and cling¬ 
ing love. In no direction is their ministry more marked 
than in healing the wounds of bereavement and sorrow. 

VI. They reconcile. They not only console our sor¬ 
row, but they most powerfully reconcile us to life’s hard- 


THE MINISTRY OF CHILDREN 


127 


ships. How many a mother struggles against hardship and 
poverty, toils day and night for her little ones, and yet 
“thinks her lot divine” because she has them to toil for! 
How many a father, returning home from the labor and 
cares of the day has had his heart cheered and strength¬ 
ened by the prattle of his little children! Thus they remove 
our thoughts from self. They say so many kind and sym¬ 
pathetic things that we are cheated of weary care and are 
reconciled to our lot in life. 

VII. They gladden. Children are the flowers of life, 
the poetry of life, the sunshine of life. Their presence is 
always gladdening. Their loveliness surprises us into a 
pure and abounding joy. How poor, how dismal, how un¬ 
inviting the world would appear were there no children in it. 

VIII. They soften and make us tender. Their help¬ 
lessness appeals to us so that we relax our hardness and 
become tender. No mother’s heart is ever just the same 
after having clasped her own child to her breast. No 
father can feel the touch of a tiny hand without being 
softened and made more gentle. The birth of a dear child 
binds the hearts of the parents more closely and tenderly 
together, and all who come in contact with the little one 
are made more kindly and affectionate and gentle. 

IX. They lead Godward. “A little child shall lead 
them.” How innumerable the instances and how remark¬ 
able the ways in which parents and friends have been 
brought to God through the influence of little children! Let 
us open our eyes to see what children may become to us, 
as well as what we ought to be to them; for in a suitable 
and reverent sense children are the salvation of the race; 
their ministry the most powerful ministry for good. 

Prayer: “O Lord, for all family life and love and com¬ 
fort we bless thee; for the laughter of children, for the mer- 


128 


THE MINISTRY OF CHILDREN 


riment that knows no anxiety, for all the hope and cheer 
and gladness of household song, for the table spread in 
the wilderness, for the cup which we have not yet ex¬ 
hausted, we bless the Lord with a warm heart and a loud 
voice. Thou hast filled the right hand with plentifulness,' 
and in our left hand is abundance, for our head is the 
diadem of grace. Blessing and honor, and glory and 
power, and thanksgiving louder than the roar of seas, be 
unto the living Father, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
for all his compassion and all his protections. Amen/’ 
Join in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


PRESENT TENSE CHRISTIANITY 


Motto for the Week: “ Now are we the sons of God.” 
1 John 3:2. 

Hymn: “Behold what wondrous grace” —Isaac Watts. 

Scripture: I John 3:1-24. 

Meditation: PRESENT TENSE CHRISTIANITY. 

Text: “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting 
life.” John 3:36. 

It would be a great gain for the world if all men could 
come to realize how truly the religion of Christ is a re¬ 
ligion of the present, for today, this very working, strug¬ 
gling, sinning, grace-demanding day. The Bible is a pres¬ 
ent tense book. “I am with you,” says Christ. “My peace 
give I unto you.” “The blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, 
cleanseth from all sin”—not will cleanse, but now cleanseth, 
makes clean at this very moment. “I can do all things 
through Christ which strengthened me.” Not, he will 
strengthen me for some future testings, but he is strength¬ 
ening me today, now, in the trials, or duties or temptations 
I am meeting at this moment. 

The Christianity of Christ is a present tense Christian¬ 
ity. 

I. The day of salvation is in the present tense. The 
Bible nowhere says for us to accept of Christ tomorrow. 
It says “Today if ye will hear his voice harden not your 
hearts.” It says “Now is the accepted time, behold, now 
is the day of salvation.” There is no salvation in the past 

129 


130 


PRESENT TENSE CHRISTIANITY 


or future tense. All the benefits of Christ’s redemption 
are available for you now, and, if the offer of salvation is 
made to you today you have no right to even think of de¬ 
laying acceptance until tomorrow. 

II. Eternal life is in the present tense. “He that be- 
lieveth on the Son hath eternal life.” In a true and deep 
sense, all who believe have already entered upon the Eter¬ 
nal state. They have stepped across the frontier life into 
the glorious state of being in which the changes of this 
mortal existence cannot affect the permanence of their life 
of blessedness. 

III. Heaven is in the present tense. The Bible does 
tell us of heaven to come, but Christ made it plain that 
we do not have to wait till after we die for heaven to be¬ 
gin with us. Said he, “The kingdom of £od is within you.” 
All the way to heaven is heaven. It is a present heaven the 
Christian enjoys, an inner heaven in the heart. It is the 
same heaven in both worlds. The only difference is one 
of degree. “Lay hold on eternal life.” It is something 
for us to get hold of now. It is a thing of the future, but 
it is a thing of the present too, and even the part of it which 
is future can be so realized and grasped by faith as to be 
actually enjoyed while we are here. 

IV. Duty is in the present tense. No man ever did or 
can do today’s duties tomorrow. “Work while it is called 
today; the night cometh when no man can work.” All duty 
is in today, and what you do for yOur own soul, what you 
do for other souls, and what you do for the world, is done 
or left undone in today. 

V. The possibilities of life are in the present tense. 
Do you think you will grasp your ideals, attain your pos¬ 
sibilities some tomorrow? No, you will not. Your tomor¬ 
row will be the result of your today. Are you grasping 
your ideals today? Are you reaching your possibilities to- 


PRESENT TENSE CHRISTIANITY 131 

day? Your tomorrow will be of the structure of today’s 
building. 

Prayer: “O Lord God, Father and Friend, hear the 
prayer we offer thee in reverent spirit and sincerest love. 
We have chosen Jesus Christ as him to whom we will con¬ 
form our lives. Aid us, we beseech thee, as we strive to 
live the strong, earnest, faithful, courageous life that he 
lived in the midst of foes. May our lips be always filled 
with praises to him. Let the Hosanna song we sing today 
be always the same. Let us never forget him and his 
mighty love. May we never crucify him by lives that deny 
the grace and power of his salvation. Oh, keep us true. 
Make us loyal to the truth. May our faith be so abiding 
that it will keep us ever patient, ever hopeful, ever able to 
say, Thy will be done. Sometimes the way is dark and 
rough, and we cannot understand why we must walk it. 
Help us to go on just the same, knowing that thou wilt 
interpret for us and make all things plain for us in thine 
own good time. We join the songs of adoration which the 
world will sing today, ‘Hosanna, thou art the King of 
glory, O Christ/ So we offer to thee, O Father, our 
praises. Accept them, we beseech thee, in the name and for 
the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen/’ 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


SPIRITUAL ATTENTIVENESS 


Motto for the Week: “My meditation of him shall he 
sweet” Psalm 104134. 

Hymn: “0 Holy Saviour, Friend Unseen” —Charlotte 
Elliott. 

Scripture: Exodus 3:i-22. 

Text: “And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see 
this great sight ” Ex. 3 -.3. 

That in these busy, hurrying times we need to be stirred 
afresh to the blessed exercise of fellowship with God, few 
Christians will deny. That fellowship with God is a blessed 
exercise all who know anything at all about Christian ex¬ 
perience will agree. “It is good for me to draw near to 
God/’ is a common sentiment of Christians; but the draw¬ 
ing near and the living near is not nearly so common as 
an attainment. The fact that we can draw near to God 
implies the fact also that it is possible to live at a dis¬ 
tance from God, which too many among even professed 
Christians do. 

Moses at the “mountain of God” was an instance of a 
man within reach of a great spiritual opportunity. What 
he saw was a burning bush, but unconsumed. Moved by 
a spirit of reasonable inquisitiveness, he said, “I will now 
turn aside and see this great sight; why the bush is not 
burnt. ,, When he paused in his going, and bent his steps in 
the direction of the wonder, there came to him the blessing 

132 


SPIRITUAL ATTENTIVENESS 


133 


of a rich revelation. Indeed, he met Jehovah, who spoke 
to him, face to face. 

It was an almost similar experience the Apostle John 
had on Patmos. Being “in the spirit on the Lord’s Day,” 
he heard a voice behind him. It was a trumpet-like voice, 
proclaiming: “I am Alpha and Omega.” John “turned to 
see” the voice that spake with him, and at once there fol¬ 
lowed a still ampler message and a richer blessing. 

What was true of Moses and what was true of John 
is true of men always,—they get visions of God and the 
richest spiritual blessings only as they give themselves pause 
in the hurry of life, and “turn aside to see.” God inti¬ 
mates in some way that he would speak with us, and when 
he does, that moment is our moment of spiritual opportu¬ 
nity. It is our duty to turn aside to see. It is our duty to 
place ourselves in the full attitude of attention. Like Sam¬ 
uel upon hearing the voice, we should say at once, “Speak, 
Lord, for thy servant heareth.” 

I. Turn aside to attend upon a spiritual mood or im¬ 
pulse. Moses did not thoughtlessly or indifferently hasten 
on, satisfied with the mere glimpses he got of the burning 
bush. No; he said, “I will turn aside, and see.” Many get 
a glimpse of spiritual possibilities,—they fall into the mood 
of spiritual thoughtfulness; but they deliberately shake 
it off, and say to the wooing Spirit of God, “Go thy way 
for this time; when I have a convenient season I will call 
for thee.” That is doing despite unto the Spirit of Grace. 
That is hurrying by the burning bush. That is failing to 
heed God’s beckoning call. That is the secret why many, 
brought up in Christian homes and churches and commu¬ 
nities, are not Christians. This same lack of spiritual at¬ 
tentiveness, too, is the reason why many Christians are 
weak in faith, lukewarm in love and powerless for serv- 


134 


SPIRITUAL ATTENTIVENESS 


ice. God has many things to say to those who will come 
near enough to him to hear his voice, or who will be still 
long enough to listen. “The secret of the Lord is with 
them that fear him.” The term here rendered “secret” is 
in the Hebrew tongue “a whisper.” When an humble and 
teachable soul is near to God, he often tells it a secret. He 
whispers in the attentive Christian’s ear some s.weet word 
of promise or of love which no one else can hear, perhaps 
which no one else could understand. Turn aside to see; 
pause long enough to find out the meaning of the intima¬ 
tion God has given. 

II. Turn aside to attend upon what God says to you 
in his Word. This is an age of secularly. The path of 
life leads along the well-beaten track of worldliness. It 
takes some grit for a busily engaged man to say to him¬ 
self : “I will now turn aside from the paths of greed and 
money-getting and secularity, and see some great thing.” 
The Bible is a letter sent to him, but he does not open it,— 
or thus far he has neglected it. He has been rushing along, 
practically heedless of what God says; but this is a very 
narrow-minded and foolish way in which to live. It is a 
happy day for any man when he comes to a distinct decision 
to deflect from his accustomed way of worldliness and listen 
to God speak. It is important, too, for all Christians to 
remember that time taken for the study of God’s messages 
is not time lost. No one is the loser by the time he spends 
with the Bible. In the largest sense “Godliness is profitable 
unto all things.” It pays us to turn aside and see God, and 
to hear what he has to say to us in his blessed Book. Turn 
aside to hear and to meditate. 

III. Turn aside to see and learn the meaning of God’s 
providential dealings. At first the burning bush seemed 
only a mysterious but meaningless happening; but it was 
far from that. Moses turned aside to see and at once 


SPIRITUAL ATTENTIVENESS 


135 


found that there was transcendent meaning in it, and a most 
important message for him. It was when God saw that he 
turned aside to see and hear, his attention arrested, that he 
spoke to him. “Be still, and know that I am God/’ Do 
you get still enough before God to permit him to tell you 
the meaning of his providential dealings with you? There 
is much you might know which you do not, many mysteries 
that would be explained to you if you only would be still 
before God, would turn aside to see and to hear what he has 
to say to you through his providential dealings. 

God speaks to us when we are still. In the busy part 
of the day, in London, so great is the rush along the Strand 
that the tolling of the clock in St. Paul’s Cathedral, as it 
strikes the hours, is not heard. People could hear it if they 
would stop and listen. Many of us live in such a rush and 
hurry that we do not hear God speak. Yet he would speak 
to us, and messages of the sweetest and most meaningful 
import, if we would give ourselves pause in life, and be 
in an attitude to heed what he says. 

Being with God shows. Men could tell that Moses had 
held fellowship with him. And being with God gives power. 
Moses went from the presence of God to work wonders in 
his name. Quiet listening to God is no hindrance to mak¬ 
ing active accomplishment in life. 

Being with God also gives a sense of zest and security. 
To go conscious that God is with us gives mighty inspira¬ 
tion to life. Moses had God consciously with him. No 
wonder he went so well on God’s errands. “I will go in 
the strength of the Lord God.” 

Prayer: “Oh God our Father, we thy children lift 
our voices to thee in supplication and in thanksgiving for 
thy manifold mercies. Our supplications are that we may 
live more nearly in accordance with thy will as expressed 


136 


SPIRITUAL ATTENTIVENESS 


for us in thy holy Word. There is the law for good life. 
There is the record of thy will. We would be what thou 
wouldst have us, but we cannot except thou shalt graciously 
grant to us day by day a real manifestation of thyself. 
Forgive us for all our failures to do what we should do. 
We ask for strength against our weaknesses. Only divine 
strength will enable us to overcome the weakness which 
belongs to human nature. But that strength thou art able 
to give, for it has been written that thy strength is made 
perfect in our weakness. The weaker we are, the more 
perfect can thy strength be in us. Help us where we need 
help, we thus beseech thee, oh our God. Hear us, and 
answer us in peace, if it be thy will, we ask, for the sake 
of Christ. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


SOME THOUGHTS FOR THE FOURTH 
OF JULY 


Motto for the Week: “Pray for the peace of Jerusa¬ 
lem, they shall prosper that love thee.” Ps. 122:6. 

Hymn: “My country ’tis of thee.” —Samuel T. Smith. 

Scripture: Psalm 35 :i-22. 

Meditation: SOME THOUGHTS FOR THE 

FOURTH OF JULY. 

Text: “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; 
and the people whom he has chosen for his own inheri¬ 
tance.” Psalm 33:12. 

God has given us a pleasant land, a very fruitful land, 
a land blessed with intelligence, liberty and Christian faith. 
This country of oun« is a goodly heritage (Psalm 16:6). 
Its providential beginning, splendid history, varied and ex¬ 
pansive domain, glorious institutions, beautiful form of gov¬ 
ernment and exalted national spirit make every patriotic 
citizen proud of our country and of our flag. We have 
every reason to be proud. Our victories in war and our 
triumphs in peace have been worthy of our civilization. 
With all our defects and sins our progress, growth, philan¬ 
thropy, popular education, citizenship, civic righteousness, 
and love of liberty place us high among the nations of the 
earth. We have a vast domain of which we may well feel 
proud, and also a national spirit which is worthy to make 
us rejoice,—a spirit which represents love of freedom and 
sympathy for the oppressed who are struggling for liberty 

137 


138 SOME THOUGHTS FOR THE FOURTH OF JULY 


and justice in all lands, while a sense of fraternity binds 
every part of our land, North and South, East and West, 
in closest union. 

We believe it was wise forethought in our fathers 
which led them to set apart Independence Day for yearly 
observance, when the attention of all our people would be 
turned toward a review of our past history and toward a 
consideration of questions bearing upon our future national 
interests and welfare. 

I. One of the facts the day should fix in our minds is 
that the founders of our Republic recognized God. The last 
sentence of the Declaration of Independence reads: “And 
for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on 
the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge,” 
etc. When the Continental Congress was organized, Ben¬ 
jamin Franklin, although not a church member, suggested 
that the sessions be opened with prayer. At Valley Forge, 
he who led our little army was found in the stillness of 
midnight on his knees, supplicating the God of nations to 
save his country which lay bleeding. In that struggle for 
independence the colonies put their trust in Him who had 
guided another nation with a pillar of cloud by day and a 
pillar of fire by night. Heaven forbid that we should ever 
abandon the faith of our fathers! “Blessed is the nation 
whose God is the Lord.” 

II. We may well learn also from this day something 
of the power of woman’s influence. When Great Britain 
placed a tax on silk, the women of America said, “We will 
wear no silk.” When a tax was placed on tea, they said, 
“We will drink no tea.” While history speaks of the War¬ 
rens and the Jaspers let it not fail to mention also the 
women of the Revolution. And let us not forget the in¬ 
fluence of women today upon the nation’s welfare. Some 
one says: “Here sits a mother by a cradle in which lies a 


SOME THOUGHTS FOR THE FOURTH OF JULY 139 

child one year old. She is rocking not one year, but more! 
She is rocking five years, ten years, fifty years, eternity!” 
'‘She who rocks the cradle rules the world.” John Ran¬ 
dolph said that he would have been an infidel but for a 
praying mother. What an infinite debt this nation owes to 
its multitudes, in noble succession, of praying mothers! 

III. We may learn also from Independence Day the 
necessity for putting one’s heart into one’s work. The 
signers of the Declaration of Independence pledged “their 
lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor,”—all they had 
they threw into that movement for independence. In the 
war England tried to bribe American generals to stop the 
conflict. General Reed, of Pennsylvania, replied: “I am 
not worth purchasing, but poor as I am, the king of Great 
Britain is not rich enough to buy me.” Such was the pre¬ 
vailing sentiment. The hearts of the people were in that 
struggle; and heart-enlistment is the secret of effective work 
always. Let us keep heart-enlisted for our nation’s welfare 
and in all that will promote righteousness and justice and 
godliness in our midst. 

IV. Let us learn, lastly, the importance of committing 
one’s self publicly to the support of right principles. Fifty' 
six men put their names on the Declaration of Indepen¬ 
dence. Placing a name there meant victory or death. Had 
they not committed themselves thus publicly they would 
have been more likely to waver before the war ceased. But 
after the names were down there was no retreat. As one 
of them said: “We must either hang together or hang sep¬ 
arately.” Their names had been published to the world as 
supporters of the Declaration of Independence, and this 
public avowal helped them to keep firm during the seven 
years’ war. 

When Sherman was about to set out on his march to 
the sea he destroyed all the railroads and bridges connect- 


140 SOME THOUGHTS FOR THE FOURTH OF JULY 

ing with the North and the authorities at Washington. 
When his army began to move he sent a telegram to the 
national capital and then cut the wires. There was no re¬ 
treat now. He was fully committed to the expedition. The 
world was watching him. Nothing remained for that army 
but to go ahead, and go ahead it did until the flashing of 
its bayonets mingled with the glimmering of the spires of 
old Savannah. 

There was divine insight in Christ’s requirement that 
Christians should confess him, commit themselves to him 
publicly. “He that confesseth me before men, him will I 
confess before my Father and the holy angels.” Such pub¬ 
lic confession is not only a command, but it is a great source 
of strength. Having made that confession publicly you find 
it less difficult to live right. Public avowal in itself helps 
you to be true to the Redeemer. Do not try to be a Chris¬ 
tian secretly. To the whole world let it be plain that you 
intend to be a Christian. Sever thus all connection with 
the sinful past; cut off all chance of retreat; and then go 
steadily forward until you behold brightly gleaming the 
spires of that eternal city whose builder and maker is God. 
And may God hasten the day when our whole nation shall 
be made up of openly avowed and consecrated Christians— 
when we shall be a people whose God is the Lord! 

Prayer: “For praying mothers and godly fathers who 
gave us an inheritance of righteous blood, and who trained 
us to reverence sacred things, we give thee thanks, O Lord. 
For children with their love, whom we have received as a 
heritage of the Lord, we return thanks. For the goodness 
and mercy which have followed us all the days of our lives; 
for prayers answered, and burdens removed; for deliver¬ 
ance and guidance; for precious memories; for blessed 
hopes, O Lord, we give thee our grateful thanks. For 


SOME THOUGHTS FOR THE FOURTH OF JULY 141 


citizenship in a land of liberty and promise; fct the privi¬ 
leges of the house of God; for the blessings of comfortable 
and happy homes; for the loved ones; for helpful friend¬ 
ship; for the esteem-of good men; for the daily life, rich 
in opportunity and service; for all that we are and have 
and enjoy, O Lord, we praise thy Holy Name. For the 
unspeakable gift of thy Son, Jesus Christ, our Saviour and 
Lord; for the indwelling and witness of thy Holy Spirit; 
for the hope of eternal life in our Father’s House of 
many mansions; for thyself—for what thou art, O Lord, 
we humbly thank thee. Amen.” 

Offer the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


THE CHRISTIAN’S GOODLY HERITAGE 


Motto for the Week: “God is the strength of my heart, 
and my portion forever.” Psalm 72:26. 

Hymn: “For thee, 0 dear, dear country .”—Bernard of 
Cluny. 

Scripture: Psalm 16:1-11. 

Meditation: THE CHRISTIAN’S GOODLY HERI¬ 
TAGE. 

Text: “The lines are fallen to me in pleasant places; 
yea, I have a goodly heritage.” Psalm 16:6. 

This Psalm is the expression of a devout believer’s faith 
in God and satisfaction with his lot. It begins with prayer, 
implies trouble, and abounds with holy confidence. It 
closes with songs of assurance as to present and ultimate 
safety and blessedness. It is plainly Messianic, as quoted 
by Peter, Acts 2:25-31, and by Paul, Acts 13:35-38, yet it 
is such an expression of faith and confidence as suited the 
feelings of David and as it is the privilege of every true 
Christian today to utter. 

From its title, “Michtam of David,” as well as from its 
intrinsic value, it has been called The Golden Psalm. Spur¬ 
geon calls it The Psalm of the Precious Secret, on account 
of the value and depth of its doctrinal and spiritual import. 

Selecting from the many thoughts suggested, let us dwell 
more particularly upon the one assigned by our topic— 
the Christian’s goodly heritage. “The lines are fallen unto 
me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.” 

142 


THE CHRISTIAN'S GOODLY HERITAGE 


143 


The land of Canaan, as we know, \yas divided by lot, 
and was thus apportioned to the various tribes of Israel. 
Of course it would follow that there would be a great di¬ 
versity in the heritages possessed. Some, as in the case of 
Dan and Issacher and Manasseh, would be more pleasant 
and fertile than others. We can imagine those with the 
choicest gratefully adopting the sentiments David expressed 
when he said: “The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant 
places, yea, I have a goodly heritage.” We have no doubt 
that the form of his language came from the way the land 
was divided, by “lot” and measured off by ropes and “lines”; 
but what David was thinking of so thankfully was God’s 
great goodness to him. David believed in an overruling 
Providence. He believed that God had fixed the bounds of 
his abode, and his possessions. More than that, he was— 
what many of us are not—satisfied with all the Divine ap¬ 
pointments. He reviewed God’s dealings with him from a 
sheepfold* to a palace, from being a shepherd to being a 
king. But cannot every Christian say as much? God has 
rescued us from the kingdom of darkness, from the thrall- 
dom of slavery to sin, and has translated us into the king¬ 
dom of his dear Son. He has made us kings and priests. 
He has adopted us into his own family, and given us a 
right to an everlasting inheritance in the land and life im¬ 
mortal. 

Think of the Christian’s goodly heritage. 

I. First, in temporal blessing. “Godliness is profit¬ 
able.” It blesses us now. It has promise of “the life that 
now is,” as well as of “that which is to come.” As a rule 
Christian people are prosperous. They live in better houses, 
have better health, have larger and happier families, have 
more friends, and have more of the riches of the respect 
of others and of personal contentment than do those who 
are not Christians. Godliness blesses men in every state of 


144 


THE CHRISTIAN'S GOODLY HERITAGE 


life. It exalts the humble. It prospers the toiler. It 
helps up those born to adversity. 

If we will look upon the things that we have rather than 
upon the things we have not, no one of us can fail to find 
much that calls for gratitude. We have a goodly heritage in 
health, in friends, in the fact of living in a Christian com¬ 
munity. This expression of the Psalmist is often used by 
the patriot in speaking of his country. We have a goodly 
heritage in a country where liberty abounds, and yet where 
anarchy is restrained, where men are equal, and yet where 
each one can press forward to the highest attainments and 
positions. All our people share in these privileges, and yet 
to the Christian they are a cause of special gratitude to 
God. 

II. Think, secondly, of the Christian's goodly heritage 
in spiritual blessings. What a heritage we have in God’s 
Word. How the Psalmist exulted in the possession of God’s 
Word; and how he delighted himself in its pages! The 
Christian has the completed Bible as his heritage. Then, 
too, he has a goodly heritage in the ordinances of God’s 
house. Here he receives spiritual nourishment and suste¬ 
nance for his soul. Here he receives new courage to con¬ 
tinue the battle against sin, fellowship with saints who 
cherish a like precious faith with himself, and actual 
strength to do well in the cause of his Master. But the 
Christian’s best heritage is in God himself. God’s blessing 
is upon the righteous. It is with them, around them, within 
them. They have life and joy and hope. They have par¬ 
don, peace, and power—“forgiving mercies, adopting love, 
and sanctifying grace.” They have the blessings of a be¬ 
nign Providence, heavenly care, and heirship to life eternal. 

III. This suggests our last thought—namely of the 
Christian’s goodly heritage of prospective glory. Some one 
has well expressed the Christian’s good estate. “He has 


THE CHRISTIAN’S GOODLY HERITAGE 


145 


grace in possession and glory in reserve.” The Christian is 
a sojourner. He is a traveler. He is enjoying the scenes 
of a foreign clime. But his richest possessions are at home. 
His real investments are in his native land. The Christian 
is looking toward and for heaven. He is hoping, expecting, 
yea, seeing its glories dimly outlined and foreshadowed. He 
is having now the earnest, the first-fruits, the foretaste of 
bliss immortal. By the temporal blessings he receives, by 
the spiritual blessings he enjoys, and by the large hope he 
indulges of prospective glory at God’s right hand, the Chris¬ 
tian has a right to say: “The lines are fallen unto me in 
pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.” 

Prayer: “Almighty God, thy claim upon our worship 
is unceasing, for thy mercy, like thy majesty, endureth for¬ 
ever. Thou dost never withhold thine hand from giving us 
good gifts. As thou hast made us in thine own image and 
likeness, so thou dost specially reveal thyself unto us day 
by day, appeasing our hunger with bread from heaven, 
and quenching our thirst with water out of the river of 
God. Oftentimes have we said concerning thy Son: ‘We 
will not have this Man to reign over us/ But when we 
have tasted the bitterness of sin, and have realized our own 
helplessness, when by the ministry of thy Holy Spirit we 
have come to understand somewhat of thine own holiness 
and mercy and love, our heart’s desire has been that Jesus 
might sit upon the throne of our love and rule our whole 
life. Amen.” 

Offer together the Lord’s Prayer. 


LIFE IN TRUE PROPORTION 


Motto for the Week: “ Seek ye first the kingdom of 
God, and his righteousness .” Matt. 6133. 

Hymn: “Jerusalem, my happy home/' —J. Montgomery. 

Scripture: 1 Kings 5:1-18. 

Meditation: LIFE IN TRUE PROPORTION. 

Text: “A month they were in Lebanon, and two months 
at home.” I Kings 5:14. 

The great work which Solomon was raised up to do was 
the building of the temple. His wealth and wisdom were 
given him to qualify him for that. In this chapter we have 
an account of the preparations he made for that and his 
other buildings. Gold and silver his father had prepared in 
abundance, but timber and stones he must get ready, and 
about these we see him treating with Hiram, king of Tyre. 

Palestine was then, though probably not to the extent 
that it is now, practically a timberless land. The houses 
in Jerusalem and Hebron and most of the villages of Pal¬ 
estine, as we see them today, are built almost entirely with¬ 
out wood. Even the ceilings are stone-arched, because of 
the scarcity of timber large enough and strong enough for 
beams. But much wood was used in erecting the temple, 
and in Solomon’s palace and other buildings. This timber 
was brought from the Lebanon mountains, in the north, 
floated to Joppa on rafts, and carried from there to Jerusa¬ 
lem. The chapter in which the account we are studying is 

146 


LIFE IN TRUE PROPORTION 


147 


found, tells of the amicable correspondence between Solo¬ 
mon and Hiram, King of Tyre. 

Tyre was a famous trading city that lay close upon the 
sea near the northern border of Palestine. Its inhabitants 
seem never to have been at enmity with Israel, and David 
and Hiram lived happily as neighbors. Indeed, it is said 
of Hiram that he was “ever a lover of David.” We have 
reason to believe that he was a worshipper of the true 
God, and had himself renounced, though he could not re¬ 
form, the idolatry of the city. 

But some of the workmen employed, especially in the 
more easy and honorable part of the labor, as felling the 
cedars and helping to square them, were Israelites. They 
worked in conjunction with Hiram’s servants. They were 
in number thirty thousand, called to this special work by 
Solomon. But he did not require them to spend all their 
time in the mountains of Lebanon or in work for him and 
his people. He employed only ten thousand at a time, so 
that for one month’s work they had two month’s vacation 
both for rest and for the dispatch of their own affairs at 
home. 

Though this whole narrative is very interesting, let us 
follow it no further now, but seek to learn two or three 
practical lessons from this one incidental statement: “A 
month they were in Lebanon and two months at home.” 
Let it suggest to us the thought of the true emphasis of life, 
or life in its true proportion. 

I. There is a lesson for us here, we think, concerning 
the importance of home and family. “Two months at 
home.” Palestine was where home was, and the claims of 
the family demanded one month for Lebanon and two 
months at home. As some one has well said: “The home 
is the true unit of value; the family,- not the individual. 
The strong nations today are the nations with homes. The 


148 


LIFE IN TRUE PROPORTION 


love of home is the strongest and most lasting of all pure 
passions.” Good homes are the hope of the world. Every¬ 
thing that is good in the church or in society is first planted 
and tended and shielded and nurtured in good homes. The 
Church began in a godly home, and it will continue best and 
prosper most where home-life is the strongest and purest. 
The strength, the perpetuity, the destiny of our own and of 
every other nation rests upon the homes established in ac¬ 
cordance with the law of God, guarded by parental author¬ 
ity and sanctified by parentl love. “Two months at home.” 
Life is not in true proportion that does not take into full ac¬ 
count the claims of home and family. The man without a 
home is not half a man, and the man who does not do his 
duty toward home is worse than an infidel. 

II. Again, there is a lesson, we think, in this incident 
concerning also the importance of the claims of country and 
patriotism. Palestine was the fatherland to these Israel¬ 
ites, and the claim of country demanded one month for Le¬ 
banon but two months for home. Solomon inaugurated a 
policy of expansion and there was a risk that the wider 
world, and this foreign work, would lure the Hebrew away 
from the land of promise. So with us; work today, money¬ 
making, the excitements of speculation, tend to undermine 
our sense of duty to our country. No country can afford 
to lose her ablest citizens. The despot and the demagogue 
get their chance when the good men are busy with the 
cedars of Lebanon, instead of casting their ballots in Jeru¬ 
salem. The true Israelite of today, the one who would 
serve God and his fellow-men, must be true to home and 
true also to country and all the claims of the most exalted 
patriotism. He must be willing, if need be, to make greater 
sacrifices for his country’s good. 

III. Once more, there is a lesson in this incident, we 
think, concerning the importance of the claims upon us of 


LIFE IN TRUE PROPORTION 


140 

religion and the Kingdom of God. Palestine was not only 
home and country to those Lebanon workers, but it was 
also the seat of national faith. Those cedars they were 
cutting were for the temple, for the sanctuary of God. 
Christianity localizes religion. He who has no home ceases 
to be human; he who has no country ceases to be civilized; 
he who has no church ceases to be religious. Christianity 
does not claim that for its religion a man should give up 
labor, home and citizenship. On the contrary, it raises 
these by associating them with itself. It was this of which 
the Hebrew Lebanon worker was reminded when he said: 
“One month here, and two months at home.” It was this 
same lesson Christ was teaching when he said: “Man can¬ 
not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth 
out of the mouth of God.” The only way in which we can 
obey God and act wisely is to do exactly what he tells us, 
and put first things first. “Seek first the kingdom of God 
and his righteousness.” Be careful about the emphasis of 
life. Be careful to live it in true proportion, giving God 
the first place; then follow his requirements. That will 
bring success in every department of life. 

Prayer: “O Lord Jesus Christ, we adore thee as thy¬ 
self, God over all blessed for evermore. Without thee, the 
Eternal Word, was not anything made that hath been made. 
Help us, we pray thee, to realize that thou art our Saviour, 
and also the Maker and Lord of all nature. Open thou our 
eyes, these summer days, to behold thee, in the mountains 
and hills, in all trees and flowers; in the rivers and water¬ 
falls; in the clouds and skies and seas; in sun, moon and 
stars. Open our ears to hear thee in the songs of birds, 
in the music of the winds, in the many breaking waves of 
the ocean, the roll of the thunder; as well as in the voices 
of men and women. Above all, Lord Jesus, speak thou to 


LIFE IN TRUE PROPORTION 


150 

our hearts in thy Word which thou hast exalted above all 
thy name; then shall we, communing with nature, commune 
with thee, nature’s Creator and Lord. Thus make all thy 
people, and all people that on earth do dwell, rejoice that 
thou, Lord Jesus Christ, omnipotent, reignest. King of 
kings, Lord of lords, reign, imperially reign in us; that so 
we may be loyal in life as well as in prayer to thee, who 
with the Father and the Holy Spirit livest and rulest in 
glory everlasting. Amen.” 

Unite in the Lord’s Prayer. 


GLADNESS IN GOD’S REIGN 


Motto for the Week: “My grace is sufficient for thee/’ 
2 Cor. 12:9. 

Hymn: “Lord of all being, throned afar ”—Oliver 
Wendell Holmes. 

Scripture: Isa. 40:1-31. 

Meditation: GLADNESS IN GOD’S REIGN. 

Text: “Alleluia, for the Lord God omnipotent reign- 
eth.” Rev. 19:6. 

These words will be uttered as the glad shout of heaven 
at the marriage supper of the Lamb. Some people are 
afraid of the fact that God reigns. Some, indeed, wish that 
he did not reign. In view of the awful prevalence of pres¬ 
ent evil, none of us can see how he is yet to bring a cul¬ 
mination of good through his reign, though we believe that 
he will. But these glorified men and the angels, standing 
within the precincts of heaven, placed in a position to know, 
seeing the full culmination of blessedness through the won¬ 
drous plan of God, will shout in full chorus of praiseful 
assent: “Alleluia, alleluia, for the Lord God onmipotent 
reignethand I doubt not that one of the very richest ex¬ 
periences that could come to us in this present time, would 
be a full realization of the glad fact that God does reign,— 
that the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. 

Now, like every other truth, this one is either alarming 
or consoling according to the way in which we stand related 

151 


152 


GLADNESS IN GOD’S REIGN 


to it. God’s friends shout it with an “Alleluia.” Those 
who refuse to honor him, must tremble before it. 

I. First, “the Lord God omnipotent reigneth,” let his 
enemies tremble. And God has enemies. This whole world 
of idolatrous and infidel ungodliness hates the high and holy 
Jehovah. They hate his laws; they hate his people; they 
hate his Church; they hate his ordinances; they hate his 
very being; and it is their highest aim to bring themselves, 
like the fool, to say in their hearts, “There is no God.” 
The) set themselves to disprove his very existence, to 
deny his power and his providence; to substitute chance, 
or fate, or necessity, or cold natural law, or some great 
physical force or resistless energy,—in fact anything rather 
than acknowledge that it is God who “doeth according to 
his will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants 
of the earth;” that it is the Lord God omnipotent who reign¬ 
eth. 

On the front of the great Downing Hall, in the north 
of Wales, is this very suggestive inscription. In English 
translation it reads: “Without God, without all; with God 
enough.” Yes, if we are without God we are without all; 
while the divinely inspired and opposite truth is, “If God 
be for us, who can be against us ?” 

II. “The Lord God omnipotent reigneth;” let his 
friends shout “Alleluia!” The truth that God is omnipo¬ 
tent in its application to his people is always joyous. If 
we have spoken of this attribute under the figure of a cloud, 
then like every cloud that floats above our heads, it has a 
whole heavenward side all bright and beautiful and glorious. 
If to his enemies God is an almighty judge, then to his 
friends he is an all-powerful helper, and there is nothing 
too hard for him to do. 


GLADNESS IN GOD’S REIGN 


153 


“The Lord God omnipotent reigneth!” It means assur¬ 
ance of success to his cause. Have you not sometimes 
trembled for the cause of Christ when you have thought of 
his great host of enemies? When you have beheld the in¬ 
temperance, the saloon power, the atheism, the infidelity, 
the unbelief, the heathenism, all in angry league against God 
and against his anointed ? And yet, his cause shall triumph. 

“Jesus shall reign where’er the sun, 

Doth his successive journeys run.” 

“The Lord God omnipotent reigneth!” It means instant 
help for his children in time of trouble. “God is our refuge 
and strength, a very present help in trouble.” 

“The Lord God omnipotent reigneth!” It means relief 
in every time of anxiety. How natural it is in us all, 
when we find ourselves or others of God’s professed people 
in great distress or anxiety, like the Psalmist in the same 
circumstances, to ask the question, “Doth God know ?” In 
such a time what a relief to our anxiety is such a word as 
this: “The Lord God omnipotent reigneth.” Surely the 
thought of God’s almighty presence is laden with the ten- 
derest consolation to the Christian. He is in the constant 
presence of an almighty Friend and Helper. Whether 
wandering in the wilderness or in his quiet home, whether 
in storm or in calm, the Christian has an all-powerful and 
loving Helper. He can shed no tear that God sees not; he 
can breathe no sigh that God hears not; he can utter no 
prayer that God regards not; and there is no power in the 
universe, “Neither death nor life nor any other creature 
* * * is able to separate him from the love of God, 
which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” 

Prayer: “Sweet is the ministry of thy word, dear 
Father, to our human need and yearning: We have found 


154 


GLADNESS IN GOD’S REIGN 


thee in the flower and the star; we have heard thy voice 
in the wind and in the whisper within our souls. Help us 
to hear thee and find thee in every place! May our great 
discovery be the unveiling of Thyself. Lift us above the 
range of vision shut in by the hills of earth, that we may 
know how thou givest help out of the boundless areas of 
the eternal land and love. May we understand how much 
the fact of thy power seen in heaven and earth means in 
the conduct of our own human affairs. May we put our¬ 
selves this day in perfect contact with the sources of per¬ 
fect power in thee, our Creator and Father. We ask all 
through the name of Christ our Lord. Amen.” 

Unite in the offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


THE IDEAL OF CHRISTIAN LIFE 


Motto for the Week: “Whom having not seen, ye love ” 
I Peter i :8. 

Hymn: “Jesus thy name I love.” —James G. Deck. 

Scripture: Col. 3:1-25. 

Meditation: THE IDEAL OF CHRISTIAN LIFE. 

Text: “For to me to live is Christ.” Phil. 1:2i. 

Some one has well said that the chief reason why Chris¬ 
tianity does not yet pervade the world is that Christ does 
not yet pervade the life of Christians. But Christ did per¬ 
vade the life of the Apostle Paul, and it was no boast, but 
a loyal acknowledgement of attachment to Christ and of 
the main motive that moved him in all that he did when 
he said, “For to me to live is Christ.” Changed and varied 
as the scenes about him might be his heart was always the 
same, as true to its one grand object—and far more stead¬ 
ily—as the magnetic needle is to the pole. A miser might 
forget his wealth, a watching mother might for a brief in¬ 
stant forget her dying babe, but the Great Apostle was 
never from under the influence of the Master he served 
and to the magnifying of whose life he gave his own. His 
life was leavened, pervaded, moved, dominated by his 
thoughts of, feelings toward, and devotion to Christ, so that 
he spoke with a truthfulness of which words were a poor 
expression, when he said, “For to me to live is Christ.” 

I. By these words we have no doubt he meant to say, 
“To me to live is to love Christ.” To some people to live 

i55 


THE IDEAL OF CHRISTIAN LIFE 


156 

is a man for a man, a man for himself. But that is not 
really living. Our life is really what we love, and if we 
do not love we do not live. No one has begun to live whose 
whole existence has been consumed upon the self-life. To 
know life as worth living we must have something or some¬ 
body to live for. That gay, merry, thoughtless, careless 
young girl you knew, whose life seemed almost useless, ex¬ 
cept the delight it gave you just to see her, has been trans¬ 
formed, revolutionized by the sweet seriousness of wifehood 
and motherhood. A little helpless being has fallen into her 
arms, and looking up through its blue eyes says, “Take care 
of me;” and if her thoughts and emotions could be put into 
speech she would say, “For to me to live is my darling.” 
It is a wonderful transformation love works in human 
souls. “Life is indeed more than meat and the body more 
than raiment.” Life is love. 

But this principle of our life is greatly intensified when 
we become the subjects of a holy, divine affection,—when 
one can say, “The love of Christ constraineth me,” or “For 
to me to live is Christ.” A great affection had enthroned 
itself in Paul and it took possession of all his powers, body, 
soul and spirit, and Christ became not alone the end and 
constraining motive of his life, but very life itself. In the 
same way and to the same degree should the love of Christ 
and love to Christ dominate the life of every Christian, and 
it is a most blessed fact and experience when they do. 

II. But by these words Paul meant, no doubt, again to 
say, “To me to live is to become like Christ.” Christ was 
not alone the author of his life, the sustainer of his life, the 
law of his life, but he was the ideal of his life, the pattern 
of his life, and he could truthfully have said: “To me to 
live is to reproduce Christ.” What a noble ideal the Chris¬ 
tian has to work toward! He can say, “I have set the Lord 
alway before me,” and then, as the student of art places 


THE IDEAL OF CHRISTIAN LIFE 


157 


himself before the canvas of some great master and tries 
to reproduce it, so he tries to reproduce the lines and fea¬ 
tures and elements of beauty which he sees in his Saviour. 
Then he can say, “For to me to live is Christ”—to become 
like, to reproduce Christ. To be sure, no one can succeed 
perfectly, but oh how happy he is in trying! And how life 
does become enobled in the effort! 

III. Paul no doubt meant by those words to say also, 
*‘To me to live is to lead others to love and become like 
Christ.” 

It was said of Thomas Pett, a noted English miser, that 
his pulse rose and fell with his funds, and that he never 
by down or rose up without blessing the inventor of com¬ 
pound interest. Of course he made money, for he gave 
himself wholly to it. 

Let us not forget that the same single-mindedness would 
make us all rich toward God. It was a unity of purpose 
like this, only infinitely more noble, that ruled in the mind of 
Paul, and it made him tremendously in earnest and won- 
drously successful in winning souls to his Saviour. 

Are we absorbed in an all-controlling desire to lead 
others to know Christ, to love Christ, to become like Christ ? 

IV. What Paul very plainly said was also this: “To 
me to live is by and by to die and then to be with Christ.” 
To him to live was to love Christ, to try and become like 
Christ, but this was all to be crowned and glorified by and 
by through his dying and going to be with Christ. “To 
die is gain.” He knew that if to live was Christ then “to 
depart and be with Christ” would be “far better.” 

Just before John Calvin died he wrote to a friend: “My 
respiration is difficult, and I am about to breathe the last 
gasp, happy to live and die in Jesus Christ, who is gain to 
all his children in life and death.” He felt what Paul felt 
and what it is the privilege of every Christian to feel who 


158 THE IDEAL OF CHRISTIAN LIFE 

finds his all in all in Christ. Whether we look back upon 
the past, now at the present, or forward into the future; 
whether within or without, behind or above, or beyond to 
the consummation, it is the blessed privilege of every Chris¬ 
tian to see “J esus only” and to rejoice in him as not only 
his lover and friend, but as his present and eternal Saviour. 

Prayer: “Blessed Master, we come to hide ourselves in 
thee. Thou art infinite, and we sink our finite lives in thine 
eternal years. Thou art loving, and we bury our harsh na¬ 
tures in the flowers of thine overflowing friendship. Thou 
art powerful, and our weakness is forgotten as we hold thy 
hand. Thou art light, and our darkness is made brilliant 
as thou dost look upon us. Thou art purity, and our sins 
are burned away as we fall before thy glorious whiteness. 
We are not afraid of thee because thou art so mighty, dear 
Christ. And if we are ashamed, it is-not from distrust of 
thee, but because we are so unworthy. Stretch out thine 
arms and let us rest in them for awhile. So shall we gain 
strength for our journey. Amen, dear Lord, Amen.” 

Unite in otfering the Lord’s Prayer. 


MOTIVES TO CHEERFULNESS 


Motto for the Week: “He that is of a merry heart hath 
a continual feast” Prov. 15:15. 

Hymn: “Awake my soul in joyful lays/' —Samuel Med¬ 
ley. 

Scripture: Prov. 3:1-35. 

Meditation: MOTIVES TO CHEERFULNESS. 

Text: “Be of good cheer” John 16:33. 

As a little girl was eating her dinner the golden rays of 
the sun happened to fall upon her apron. Putting her spoon 
to her mouth she exclaimed: “O Mamma, I have swal¬ 
lowed a whole spoonful of sunshine.” We believe it would 
be an excellent thing, doing more good than food or med¬ 
icine, if a lot of us professed Christians could swallow not 
one but many spoonsful of sunshine. “A merry heart,” the 
wise Solomon says, “doeth good like a medicine,” and we 
believe that a little “sunshine in our souls” would not alone 
do us good, but would be the means of good to thousands 
of others who might be made better and happier through 
our cheerfulness. 

What are some of the motives that ought to influence us 
to cheerfulness ? 

I. One, though by no means the highest, is that others 
have troubles as well as we. Your neighbor may not have 
your troubles, but he has troubles, just the same. And rich 
and poor, the high and the lowly, alike do not escape them. 
We have read that the Czar of Russia cannot trust even the 

159 


i6o 


MOTIVES TO CHEERFULNESS 


members of his own household; that the doors of his study 
are so made that only two or three persons know how to 
open them; that the walls of his room are lined with steel, 
and that there are five or six tables distributed around the 
room, so that no one will know at a given time in what 
part of the room the Czar is sitting. He has not your 
trouble. He may not need to worry about his house rent 
or grocery bills, but the Czar of all the Russias, the 
crowned head of one hundred million people, has his troub¬ 
les as well as you and I. If you wait until you have no 
trouble in order to become cheerful you will never be 
cheerful. So our advice to you is just to remember that 
everybody has troubles, and cheer up and bear your troubles 
bravely and with a hopeful heart. 

II. Another motive to cheerfulness is this—that you 
may not be as bad off as you think. You may have been 
making the mistake of magnifying your troubles. You may 
really be in a much better condition than you suppose. Your 
troubles may be partly imaginary. We have read of an 
old gentleman who had the rheumatism so badly he could 
not walk a step. All day long he sat helpless in his chair, 
and had to be waited on like an infant. One day his at¬ 
tendants carried him in his chair out under the shade of a 
tree on his lawn. There he sat, perfectly helpless, looking 
at the birds and the flowers, when suddenly a dog, foaming 
at the mouth, leaped over the fence and made toward the 
invalid and his attendants. The attendants, forgetting the 
man, rushed toward the house. The poor, helpless invalid, 
who could not take a step, sprang from his chair, and beat 
his attendants in the house-ward race. He did not know 
what he could do till he had to; he was not in as bad shape 
as he thought he was. We knew a woman who had kept 
her bed for twenty years, who, at an alarm of fire, leaped 
from her bed and rushed out into the street. We are glad 


MOTIVES TO CHEERFULNESS 161 

to say that she was not so foolish as to take to her bed 
again. She was not in as bad shape as she thought she 
was. So it may be with you. Cheer up! Get your mind 
off your troubles. Do not think about them. Think of the 
bright things in life. Think gratefully of the good things 
you have, and be cheerful. 

III. Another motive to cheerfulness is that it will pay 
well. It is profitable to you. Some one has well said: 
“Of all the virtues cheerfulness is the most profitable. It 
makes the person who exercises it happy, and renders him 
acceptable to all he meets. While other virtues delay the 
day of recompense, cheerfulnss pays down.” It prolongs 
life. Dr. Marshall Hall, we are told, frequently prescribed 
“cheerfulness” for his patients, saying that it was better 
than anything he could get at the druggists. “Mirth is 
God’s medicine,” says a wise writer, “and everybody ought 
to bathe in it.” It was a favorite saying of Bancroft, the 
historian, who was a vigorous old man at ninety, that the 
secret of a long life is in cheerfulness—in never losing one’s 
temper. Modern science shows that our mental moods have 
power to produce disease. Our personal well-being and de¬ 
sire for length of life should prompt us to a life of cheer¬ 
fulness. 

Cheerfulness also secures us friends. We all love the 
cheerful man, woman or child. We shun the gloomy and 
melancholy. We may pity them, and wish them well, but 
we do not love them, we do not enjoy being with them, and 
avoid them as much as our consciences will allow. It will 
pay you well in friends and appreciation for you to be full 
of good cheer. “The cheerful live longest in years and 
afterward in our regards.” 

Cheerfulness also increases our enjoyments. “I have 
been told,” says Southey, “of the Spaniard who always put 
on spectacles when about to eat cherries, in order that the 


162 


MOTIVES TO CHEERFULNESS 


fruit might look larger and more tempting.” We all know 
the power of good cheer to magnify every enjoyment. It 
would pay us to cultivate this grace more. 

Sidney Smith once said: “I have gout, asthma, and 
seven other maladies, but—am otherwise very well.” John 
Wesley said: “I feel and grieve, but, by the grace of God, 
I fret at nothing.” 

Then, too, it honors religion. The spies that went over 
into Canaan and carried back of the good fruits of the 
country, thereby invited the Children of Israel to go for¬ 
ward and enter into the Promised Land. By our cheerful¬ 
ness and faith in God under all circumstances we honor 
him and his religion and give a winsome invitation to 
others to enter into the land where such desirable fruits 
abound. A cheerful Christian shows to the world that he 
serves a good Master. 

A great variety of motives, therefore, move us to this 
grace of cheerfulness, especially our own well-being, our 
regard for the dear ones of our households and all about 
us, and loyalty to the divine Master we serve. 

“Blessed are the joy-makers.” 

“ ’Tis always morning somewhere, and above 
The awakening continents, from shore to shore, 
Somewhere the birds are singing evermore.” 

Prayer: “O Lord, thy mercy is great, it extendeth 
over all thy works, it endureth forever, it becomes tender 
mercy by long use and great endurance, and thy kindness 
becomes loving kindness, the very bloom and fragrance of 
love. May we enter into the sanctuary of thine heart, and 
find rest there, having entered by the living door, the living 
Christ. How precious are thy thoughts unto us! They are 
not of the earth earthy; they fill all heaven, they reveal 


MOTIVES TO CHEERFULNESS 


163 


infinity, they dwell upon the sublimities of the eternal state, 
and whilst we follow thy thoughts we are lifted up in 
noblest elevation and forgetting earth and time and space 
we see heaven opened and the whole creation gathered in 
worship round the feet of Christ. Let us also gather there 
and receive the rich blessing of thy Fatherhood. Through 
the name of Christ we ask. Amen.” 

Offer together the Lord’s Prayer. 


UNLOAD YOUR CARES 


Motto for the Week: “In all thy ways acknowledge 
him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Prov. 3:6. 

Hymn: “Cast thy burden on the Lord” —Anonymous. 

Scripture: Matt. 6:19-34. 

Meditation: UNLOAD YOUR CARES. 

Text: “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth 
for you.” I Pet. 5 7. 

A very beautiful thought is brought out by the French 
translation of this verse. Where our version reads “cast¬ 
ing” the French translation is “unload.” The difference 
of meaning is made plain by an illustration we have some¬ 
where seen. The writer said: “The word ‘cast’ might 
seem to bring to our mind the action of taking up something 
and throwing it over on Jesus; but many times, dear friend, 
have you not found the cares too heavy to lift? Have you 
not felt that they are crushing you with their weight? 
Have you ever seen a coal cart unload? The man took out 
of the front of the heavy cart a little iron pin and the cart 
was so balanced on the axles that then, with a slight pres¬ 
sure on the back of the cart, it would tip up and the whole 
ioad slide on to the ground, and the pony would trot away 
with a light step. You do not have to take it up; just 
take out the little pin of your endeavors to help matters, 
and then, with your hands of faith and committal, tip up 
the big load, and then run on, for ‘He takes care of you.’ ” 

164 


UNLOAD YOUR CARES 


165 


Whether the cares of life bear as a load upon the shoul¬ 
ders, the head, or the heart, or upon all three, we are per¬ 
mitted to “roll them upon the Lord.” 

I. Unload the cares you carry on your shoulders. It 
may be that it is the daily responsibility of toil that rests so 
heavy upon you. You feel that you have so much to do. 
There is so much depending on your doing it. Your fam¬ 
ily must be fed; your children must be educated; that sick 
wife or daughter must be tended. There is a tremendous 
load upon your shoulders. You ask if it is possible to un¬ 
load any such actual, human, every-day burdens as these 
upon God. How can it be done? For answer we give an 
illustration heard from the lips of the aged and saintly pas¬ 
tor, the late Rev. Dr. James B. Shaw, of Rochester, N. Y., 
used in one of the last sermons he preached, shortly before 
his death. He said: “You have all noticed how little chil¬ 
dren keep constantly on the go; they play from morning 
till night and work so hard at it, keeping on, keeping on,— 
you can scarcely get them to stop to sleep. Indeed if Sleep 
gets them at all he must catch them on the fly! It is a 
wonder to you, an actual source of amazement how they 
ever manage to keep up their work and activity so long. 
The secret is” he added, “that they are free from care. 
They do the work and let the father take the worry.” If 
we were only like children in this respect, how much longer 
and better we could live and how much more we could ac¬ 
complish! Let us do the work and let the Father take 
the worry. God is willing to take your load and leave you 
“free to serve.” 

A father was moving his library upstairs. His little 
boy wanted to help, and piled his arms full of books. But 
at the foot of the stairs he could go no further. The bur¬ 
den was too heavy, and he stood there crying. In a mo¬ 
ment the father came and took up both the boy and the 


i66 


UNLOAD YOUR CARES 


books and carried them up. That is the way God is will¬ 
ing to do with you—carry both you and your burden. “He 
careth for you.” 

II. Unload the cares you carry on your head. That 
may sound a little odd, but people do carry burdens on their 
heads. Some also carry burdens that no one can see on 
their heads. There are men who try to sleep with cash 
books and cash boxes and ledgers piled up on their heads; 
and some have heavier things, such as stores and build¬ 
ings and bridges and railroads and great institutions on 
their heads. In some respects there is not much difference 
between the burdens that rest on the shoulders and those 
that rest on the head. Indeed our whole self is concerned 
when we carry a heavy burden anywhere. Nevertheless 
many a person has broken down under a burden on the head 
who could have borne well a greater weight upon the 
shoulders. 

Let another illustration teach us how these burdens of 
anxiety and mental care and strain can be rolled off upon 
our Burden Bearer. 

A shipmaster was once out for three nights in a storm; 
close by the harbor, he yet dared not attempt to go in, and 
the sea was too rough for the pilot to come aboard. Afraid 
to trust the less experienced sailors, he himself stood 
firmly at the helm. Human endurance almost gave way be¬ 
fore the unwonted strain. Worn with toil, beating about, 
and yet more with anxiety for his crew and cargo, he was 
well-nigh relinquishing the wheel and letting all go a- 
wreck, when he saw the little boat coming with the pilot. 
At once that hardy sailor sprang on the deck, and, with 
only a word, took the helm in his hand. The captain went 
immediately below for food and rest, and especially for 
comfort to the passengers, who were weary with appre¬ 
hension. Plainly, now, his duty was in the cabin. The 


UNLOAD YOUR CARES 


167 

pilot would care for the ship. Where had his burden gone ? 
Where, indeed? for the captain’s heart was as light as a 
schoolboy’s and his mind as free from care. He felt no 
pressure. The pilot, too, seemed perfectly unconcerned. 
He had no distress, either. But where had the burden 
gone? The great load of anxiety was gone forever, fallen 
in some way or other between them! It must be in some 
such way as this the untold multitudes of earth are invited 
to unload their mental cares and anxieties upon God and 
yet his own burden never become too great. 

III. Unload the cares you carry on your heart. God 
has no children without sorrow, and in many cases the load 
seems too heavy to be borne; but his own invitation is: 
“Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee.” 
If you will look at this verse as it stands in our English 
Bibles you will see that another translation is added upon 
the margin alongside, introducing the exceedingly impres¬ 
sive figure of speech employed by the Psalmist in his own 
language. There it reads: “Roll thy way upon the Lord 
as if our care was a burden, and could be heaved off upon 
Almighty Shoulders, so that our relieved souls could stand 
up lithe and erect. 

But the thing that can most surely unload the heart is 
to come into consciousness of the fact so plainly stated: 
“He careth for you.” That means that he loves us and 
sympathizes with us, and will exercise his strength in our 
behalf. Whatever the burden that bears down the heart, to 
know that God has not left us out of mind or out of sight, 
but that he is “keeping watch over his own,” and “will 
make all things work together for our good,” cannot fail to 
lighten the weight and give a sense of security and a glad 
hope of final good. Unload your cares. 


168 


UNLOAD YOUR CARES 


Prayer: “Almighty God, our heavenly Father, who set- 
test the solitary in families, we commend to thy continual 
care the homes in which thy people dwell. Put far from 
them, we beseech thee, every root of bitterness, the desire 
of vain glory and of the pride of life. Fill them with faith, 
virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness. Knit 
together in constant affection those who, in holy wedlock, 
have been made one flesh; turn the heart of the fathers to 
the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, 
and so enkindle charity among us all that we be ever more 
kindly affectioned with brotherly love; through Jesus Christ 
our Lord. Amen.” 

Offer together the Lord’s Prayer 


THE MINISTRY OF LITTLE THINGS 


Motto for the Week: “Inasmuch as ye have done it 
unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it 
unto me” Matt. 25 140. 

Hymn: “Work for the night is coming” —Anna C. 
Coghill. 

Scripture: Matt 25:31-46. 

Meditation: THE MINISTRY OF LITTLE THINGS. 

Text: “And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of 
these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a 
disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his re¬ 
ward.” Matt. 10:42. 

When sending out his disciples, Jesus, in a closing word, 
taught them the importance of the ministry of little things. 
He said that even a cup of cold water given to one of the 
earth’s thirsty children will not be forgotten. 

I. In the first place, Christ gave us this lesson, we 
think, to let us know how acceptable little services are to 
him. 

How plainly he taught this fact in the account of the 
widow and her two mites. Little things done in the right 
spirit are acceptable to us. The child brings her teacher 
only a little faded flower, but when the act means, “I love 
you,” how it moves and blesses the teacher’s heart. Christ 
wants us to know that when we do all we can for him he 
will not despise it because it is little. It is inspiring to us 
to know that even the littles are appreciated. What a 

169 


170 


THE MINISTRY OF LITTLE THINGS 


blessing this thought should be to those quiet but steady 
workers who are always doing not great but little unnoticed 
things. If you wait for opportunities to do great things 
you will never accomplish anything. The rain that falls 
upon the earth and makes the grass grow and the flowers 
bloom comes down in little drops. Great railroads are built 
one little shovelful at a time. We all have a call to the min¬ 
istry of little things; and Christ accepts what we do for 
him as done to him. 

II. Again, Christ gave us this lesson, we think, be¬ 
cause he knew what great results flow from doing little 
things. 

It would be better to get a great many people to doing 
little things than to have a few doing great things. Greater 
results would be obtained. The splendid suspension bridge 
at Niagara first went over that profound chasm a tiny kite 
string. One word of praise from his mother made Ben¬ 
jamin West a painter. A kind sentence or two of com¬ 
mendation bestowed upon a short talk of a young man in 
prayer-meeting lead one of the most eminent of our pres¬ 
ent day ministers into the ministry. It was a little thing 
for a Christian lady to speak a single word of spiritual in¬ 
terest to the writer when a boy, but it lead him to Christ. 
It was a little thing for the Worcester, Massachusetts, shoe¬ 
maker to touch John B. Gough on the shoulder, but it saved 
him from a drunkard’s grave, and thousands of others be¬ 
sides him, through his efforts. It was a little thing when a 
boy invited Mr. Moody into a Boston Sunday School, but 
it lead him to Christ, and into his work, and a low estimate 
would reckon fifty thousand souls saved by Mr. Moody’s 
subsequent efforts. Good grows as it goes on. The little 
rivulet widens to a river. Great results grow from doing 
little things. 


THE MINISTRY OF LITTLE THINGS i?l 

III. But a special reason, we think, why Christ spoke 
these words was because he wanted us all to work. He 
knew we would be in danger of thinking we could do so 
little that we would not try to do anything at all. He also 
saw what would happen if he could get all to work doing 
even the littles. When, in olden times, they had meetings 
by “early candle-light,” the two or three candles brought 
by the first comers made but little light, but when the 
many came, each with a candle, the room was filled with 
light. Each coal miner wears a little lamp upon his hat. It 
gives very little light, but in the mine there are a great 
many miners with lamps, so there is plenty of light. So in 
every community there are a great many Christians, and if 
each individual would do the littles in his or her power there 
would be a great deal of good work done. 

IV. Once again, these words were spoken by Christ, 
we think, because he wanted us all to know that no worker 
would lose his reward. 

The impression is liable to get abroad that it is those 
who do conspicuous service who reap the rewards. People 
think that men like Moses and Joshua and Luther and 
Knox, and women like Deborah and Esther and Florence 
Nightingale and Fidelia Fisk are the ones who receive the 
rewards. But Christ wanted to teach that everyone, in 
high place or low place, who is faithful to his opportunities 
and capacity, will in no wise lose his reward. 

Prayer: “O God, the Father of the forsaken, the Help 
of the weak, the Supplier of the needy, who hast diffused 
and proportioned thy gifts to body and soul, in such sort 
that all may acknowledge and perform the joyous duty of 
mutual service; who teachest us that love towards the race 
of man is the bond of perfectness, and the imitation of 
thy blessed self; open our eyes and touch our hearts, that 


1 7 2 


THE MINISTRY OF LITTLE THINGS 


we may see and do, both for this world and for that which 
is to come, the things which belong unto our peace. 
Strengthen us in the work we have undertaken; give us 
counsel and wisdom, perseverance, faith and zeal, and in 
thine own good time, and according to thy pleasure, prosper 
the issue. Pour into us the spirit of humility; let nothing 
be done but in devout obedience to thy will, thankfulness 
for thine unspeakable mercies, and love to thine adorable 
Son Christ Jesus. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


THINGS MONEY CANNOT BUY 


Motto for the Week: “Godliness with contentment is 
great gain ” I Tim. 6:6. 

Hymn: “How gentle God's commands ”—Philip Dod¬ 
dridge. 

Scripture: I Tim. 6:1-21. 

Meditation: THINGS MONEY CANNOT BUY . 

Text: “A good name is rather to be chosen than great 
riches, and loving favor rather than silver and gold ” Prov. 
22 :i. 

Doubtless we are all at times inclined to wish that we 
were rich. We are quite sure that it would be of great ad¬ 
vantage to us in many ways, and possibly it would. One 
thing, this proverb we are to study together does not give 
us the least suggestion that it would not. The fact is that 
the Bible, quite contrary to a prevalent impression, never 
says anything whatever against the desirability of the pos¬ 
session of money. It does point out that the inordinate or 
unlawful love of money is a root of all sorts of evil; but 
it does not condemn either money or the possession of it. 
Indeed, it quite agrees with a sentiment well expressed by 
Sir Bulwer Lytton when he says: “Never treat money af¬ 
fairs with levity, for money is character.” We all recog¬ 
nize that money is character, that how a man uses money, 
how he makes it, how he saves it, how he spends it, is one 
of the very best tests of his practical wisdom and soundness 
of heart. Money is certainly among God’s many good and 

173 


174 


THINGS MONEY CANNOT BUY 


perfect gifts, and it is a good thing to possess. I wish that 
we all might have more of it—as much as we could bear 
and still keep humble and lowly of heart in the sight of 
God and man. 

But what this proverb we are to study recognizes is that 
there are some things worth more than money, some things 
money cannot buy. We will name a few. 

I. One thing money cannot buy is a good name. It 
is above price. It is rather to be chosen than great riches. 
Each possessor has a right to rejoice in so valuable a pos¬ 
session as an honorable name—not necessarily a distin¬ 
guished name, but a clean one. Truly pride in such an in¬ 
heritance, which cannot be bought, is justifiable, if with it 
we are mingling a feeling of humility and a desire to do 
one’s own part to transmit the name as unsullied as it has 
been bestowed. This refers to pride in a name we have in¬ 
herited. We have a right to even greater pride in a name 
we have ourselves made honorable by our own character 
and conduct. Millions of money look trifling alongside of 
character. The crown and glory of life is character. It is 
the noblest possible possession, constituting a rank in itself, 
and is a rich estate in conscious integrity and the general 
good will of our fellows. It dignifies every station, exalts 
every position in society and exerts a far greater power than 
wealth ever does, while it brings none of wealth’s jealousies 
and envy. 

II. Another thing money cannot buy is a happy home. 
There are people who have the opposite impression, and 
think if only they were rich they would have a perfect 
home. But what makes home? Not the tables and the 
chairs; not the delicacy of porcelain, nor the artistic beauty 
which the loom achieves. These minister to comfort, taste 
and artistic nature; but beyond there is something which 


THINGS MONEY CANNOT BUY 


175 


ministers to the heart and soul, glorifying plain surround¬ 
ings and homely details, something quite illusive to measure 
or weigh, yet potent to bless, to comfort, to help. What is 
this but the sympathy, the trust, the spirit of sacrifice, the 
gentleness, the faith, the readiness to do and to bear which 
love brings ? And love cannot be bought with money. 

III. Another thing money cannot buy is a thankful 
heart. It is good to have gifts; but it is better to have a 
heart that recognizes the Giver of them all and is truly 
grateful. The most beauteous prospects, the most luxurious 
surroundings, the wonders of nature and of art, lose all 
their charm when viewed by eyes that seeing, see not, or 
when shared by a cold and thankless heart. The power to 
enjoy, the power to appreciate, these are what render pleas¬ 
ures, great and small, and extracting the honey of enjoy¬ 
ment from them is not purchaseable at any store, yet it is 
another and large factor in true happiness. 

IV. Another thing money cannot buy is a contented 
mind. Where can contentment be found? At what store 
is it sold? What is its price? Not silver nor gold, but a 
patient trust in God coupled with a thankful heart will 
bring it to the soul that desires it. 

Things cannot make us happy. Contentment cannot be 
bought. A philosopher was once passing through a mart 
filled with articles of taste and luxury. We are told that 
he made himself perfectly happy by this simple yet sage 
remark: “How many things are in the world of which 
Diogenes hath no need!” 

It may be real help to some of us to know that content¬ 
ment is a thing that can be gained without money and with¬ 
out price. It is available to us all. It is a very valuable 
possession. “Godliness with contentment is great gain. ,, 

V. One other thing we will mention which money can¬ 
not buy is the hope and final happiness of heaven. Our 


176 


THINGS MONEY CANNOT BUY 


money will perish with us if we think to purchase either 
the hope or the final attainment of heaven with gold. Eter¬ 
nal life is a gift. “Heaven alone may be had for the ask¬ 
ing.” 

Let us not make the mistake of putting too high a value 
on money. It may be a good thing to have; but the best 
things of this life and of the life which is to come are avail¬ 
able to us without money and without price. 

Prayer: “Our Father, we thank thee for this day of 
rest and worship. Help us to keep it holy, and to gain all 
that we may for our bodies and souls from its sacred priv¬ 
ileges. Bless the preaching of thy Word in this community 
and around the world. Bless all ministers of the gospel, 
and all teachers of thy truth. Comfort the sad and the 
lonely, and strengthen the weak and the tempted. Help us 
this day to make a Sabbath day’s journey nearer to thee, 
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.” 

Offer together the Lord’s Prayer. 


WORK AS A MEANS OF GRACE 


Motto for the Week: “I am among you as one that 
serveth” Luke 22:27. 

Hymn: “Work, for the night is coming.” —Anna L. 
Coghill. 

Scripture: Matt. 13:53-58. 

Meditation: WORK AS A MEANS OF GRACE. 

Text: “And because he was of the same craft, he abode 
with them and wrought, for by occupation they were tent- 
makers.” Acts 18:3. 

Among the Jews in early times, it was customary to 
teach all their children the full details of some useful call¬ 
ing. It is recorded as a saying of one of the wisest of the 
rabbis that “he who would not bring his son to a trade was 
as if he forced him to be a thief.” Christ’s disciples were 
workingmen.. Christ Himself was a carpenter. Here we 
see that Paul was a tent-maker. Work is honorable. It 
may also be very wholesome for us, and usually is. 

I. Consider, first, some facts in regard to Paul’s con¬ 
duct as a worker. 

Paul chose a decent and reputable calling. No one can 
doubt that tent-making was above reproach as a business. 
Some occupations in which men engage today are neither 
decent nor honorable—saloon-keeping, the blood-sucking of 
money “brokers” who take mortgages on the household 
goods of the poor, those who rent shaky, unwholesome ten¬ 
ements, etc. 


1 77 


178 


WORK AS A MEANS OF GRACE 


Paul sought consistent companionship in his business. 
Aquila and Priscilla were intelligent, high minded and com¬ 
panionable to this man of God. 

Bad companions, ill-mated partnerships have wrecked 
many a business. People of honesty and similar religious 
tastes naturally drift together. They may be mutually help¬ 
ful, as were these tent-makers in Corinth. Doubtless, they 
were agreed on making good tents, in closing their store on 
the Sabbath, etc. We know that Paul did no Sabbath work, 
for we are told that “he reasoned in the synagogue every 
Sabbath and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.” 

*Paul found opportunities to do good when hardest at 
work. Probably he was the means of the conversion of 
Aquila and Priscilla, and we know that they became so 
spiritually intelligent that afterwards he sent the young and 
eloquent Apollos to them to be “instructed more perfectly 
in these things,” before he was to start out to preach. They 
conducted the first New Testament theological seminary. 

II. Note, secondly, some advantages growing out of 
the fact of Paul’s laboring with his hands. 

It put him alongside the people and in sympathy with 
them. There are “way-up” workers for Christ who can do 
little on account of the lack of placing themselves near 
those they would help. 

This contact with the people enabled Paul to appreciate 
their needs and how to meet them. This principle lies back 
of all the College Settlements and work of such institutions 
as Hull House, Chicago, Toynbee Hall, and Mansfield 
House, London. It is not always the fault of the poor that 
they do not get along better. They do not know how. 
They can be taught by those who will take the necessary 
steps to learn and appreciate their needs. 

Paul’s work in Corinth evidently brought cure for the 
despondency he was in when he came there. Coming from 


WORK AS A MEANS OF GRACE 


179 


Athens, where he had such ill success, he said: “I came to 
you in weakness and fear, and much trembling.” Anyway, 
we know that there is good cheer in work—not in worry, 
but in work. The London physician told his rich patient: 
“Live on three shillings a day and earn it.” Work is whole¬ 
some for an individual. It is wholesome also for a church. 
There is nothing like exercise to keep people warm and well. 

Paul’s work deepened his personal love for Christ. This 
was because he did his business for Christ and in his name. 
Business is a means of grace when the underlying motive 
for doing is love of Christ and a purpose to do his will in 
the spot where he has placed us. “Prayer and provender 
hinder no man’s journey.” There is no such thing as being 
too busy for religion. But there is such a thing as living 
so that “whether we eat or drink or whatsoever we do, 
all shall be done to God’s honor and glory.” 

Let us not think unkindly of our toil. We would soon 
weary of idleness. Honest work is a blessing, and may be 
a real means of grace. 

Prayer: “Father, help us to hear thy high and holy 
call in every homely duty and every humble task; in the 
drudgery of house-keeping; in the dreariness of accounts; 
m the difficulty of study; in the hardness of toil; in the 
competition of trade, in the claims of society; in the fight 
with appetite; in the struggle with poverty; in the manage¬ 
ment of wealth; in the love of friends; in courtesy to foes. 
In all the common experiences of life help us to see thy 
love before us to point out the way our love must take; help 
us to feel thy strength within making hard things easy, and 
translating the otherwise impossible into accomplished fact. 

Doing all things as thou wouldst have us do them, bear¬ 
ing all things as thou wouldst have us bear them, may we 


i8o 


WORK AS A MEANS OF GRACE 


find thee where alone thou canst be found—in thy world, 
Lord of its life, Solver of its problems, Saviour from its 
sin. 

Teach us, then, to take eagerly, as from a Father’s hand, 
every wholesome practical pursuit; that in the beautiful 
world where thou hast placed us, and the interesting work 
thou givest us to do, we may ever see the face of the 
Father, and live the life of a child. We ask through Christ 
our Lord. Amen.” 

OfiFer the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


THE CALL FOR CONTINUANCE 


Motto for the Week: “He that endureth to the end 
shall be saved .” Matt. 10:22. 

Hymn: “O Jesus, I have promised to serve Thee to 
the end.” —John E. Bode. 

Scripture: Rev. 3:1-22. 

Meditation: THE CALL FOR CONTINUANCE. 

Text: “Who will render to every man according to his 
deeds; to those who by patient continuance in well doing 
seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life; but 
unto them that are contentious and do not obey the truth, 
but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath.” Romans 
2:6-8. 

None of us can be absolutely sure of heaven until he gets 
there. A good beginning plus a good continuance makes a 
good ending. The test of endeavor is a safe arrival; and 
there are always some peradventures in the way to be 
met. Heed is needed lest, having preached to others, I my¬ 
self, should be a castaway. The proof of our religion is 
the holding on to the end. Patient continuance is the one 
test of established character, and it is the only evidence of 
our being really “rooted and grounded in Christ.” “He 
that endureth unto the end,” said Christ, “shall be saved.” 
“Wherefore, gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and 
hope unto the end,” urges the Apostle Peter. In Hebrews 
we read: “For we are made partakers of Christ if we 
hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the 

181 


I&S 


THE CALL FOR CONTINUANCE 


end.” Just before closing the last book of his Revelation, 
God sent letters to the members of the “seven churches in 
Asia,” and this was the burden of his message: “Be thou 
faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” 
“He that overcometh and keepeth my words unto the end 
will 1 give power over the nations,” was the word to the peo¬ 
ple of Thyatira. “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit 
with me on my throne, as I also overcame and am set down 
with my Father on his throne,” was the exhortation to the 
Laocficeans. Seven repeated times in two short chapters are 
promises made “to him that overcometh,” and to only such. 
How important it is, then, that we all hold the beginning of 
our confidence steadfast unto the end! How important it 
is, fellow-disciple, that you cherish your hope! Never give 
up or give over your faith. Be steadfast. Hold on; hold 
fast; hold out. Patience is genius. Persistence is victory. 
He who does not tire, tires adversity, and all comes out 
right to him who perseveres. 

“Courage, brother! do not stumble, 

Though thy path be dark as night; 

There’s a star to guide the humble; 

Trust in God and do the right.” 

The very essence of perseverance is contained in that 
line, “Trust in God and do the right.” That is the true 
union of faith and works. That tells us that the Christian 
life is after all a practical life. If we would succeed we 
must do something. We need faith in God—that is true— 
but we need also patient continuance in well doing; and if 
we are ever so happy as to reach heaven at all, it will be 
because we exercised that very practical grace. 

Our theme is the call for continuance, or the great neces¬ 
sity there is on our part, as Christians, for “patient contin¬ 
uance in well doing.” 


THE CALL FOR CONTINUANCE 


183 


I. One reason is on account of the many difficulties and 
discouragements we must meet. We all know something of 
the heartaches, the fears of failure, the discouragements 
and the temptations there are toward letting go and giving 
up. Oftentimes, how long and how hard seems the way; 
how steep the mountains and how wide the streams we must 
cross before we can hope to enter the celestial city. This, 
I am convinced, is one of the commonest assaults of evil, 
—this tendency toward discouragement, toward despond¬ 
ency in the Christian life, toward letting go and giv¬ 
ing up. 

For example, here is one who resolves to enter upon the 
Christian course. He accepts and confesses the Saviour, 
and is counted among the people of God. But before he is 
fairly under way Satan comes to him, and says: “Now, 
of course, you have started; but you forgot to count the 
cost. Only think how long and difficult the way, and how 
much you must endure. You are a fool to try. You may 
as well give up first as last and have done with it. Any¬ 
way, you are a fool to try in your circumstances, or with 
your nature and disposition. Some people may succeed un¬ 
der their more favorable circumstances or with different in¬ 
herited tendencies, but you may be sure it is impossible for 
you. Why strain and struggle at what you know is impos¬ 
sible? Don’t do it. Give up. Quit!” 

Now if life were a mere holiday pleasure trip, or if we 
could be “carried to the skies on flowery beds of ease,” 
then I would think it unwise to mention such testings; but 
discouragements and doubts and solicitation to sin and fierce 
testings are absolutely sure to come. If, then, to be fore¬ 
warned is to be in any degree forearmed, it is well for us all 
to know the need we will find for patient continuance in 
well doing. 


i 84 THE CALL FOR CONTINUANCE 

II. A second reason why we speak of the great need 
there is for patient continuance in well doing, is because all 
success depends upon it. 

Before his death Rev. Dr. Theodore L. Cuyler was 
heard to remark that he had been watching the careers of 
young men in Brooklyn and New York for many years, 
and, said he: “I have come to the deliberate conclusion 
that the chief difference between the successful and the 
failures lies in the single element of staying power.” Per¬ 
manent success is oftener won by holding on than by sud¬ 
den dash, however brilliant. The easily discouraged who 
are pushed back by a straw, are all the time dropping to 
the rear. Every man’s success in the world depends largely 
on patient continuance, persistence, endurance. Something 
like this is what General Daniel Morgan, of Revolutionary 
fame, meant, when in comparing the soldiers of the war, 
he said: “As to the fighting part of the matter, the men 
of all nations are pretty much alike; they fight as much as 
they find necessary, and no more. But, sir, for the grand 
essential in the composition of the good soldier, give me the 
Dutchman,—he starves well.” Yes, it is this persistent en¬ 
durance, this staying power in the athlete on the race¬ 
course, the rower in the boat-race, or the warrior in the 
battle-charge, that in the long run tells. 

I remember as a boy often hearing the saying: “Brag 
is a big dog, but Holdfast is better.” Oliver W. Holmes 
has put the same thought into a somewhat homely but very 
practical couplet, when he says: 

“Stick to your aim; the mongrel’s hold will slip, 

But only crowbars loose the bull-dog’s grip.” 

After a great snowstorm a little fellow began to clear 
a path before the door with nothing but a small kitchen 
shovel to work with. “How do you expect to get through 
that drift?” asked a gentleman passing. “By keeping at 


THE CALL FOR CONTINUANCE 


185 


it,” cheerfully exclaimed the little fellow, “that’s how.” 
Yes, and that is the secret of mastering almost every diffi¬ 
culty. Keeping at it,—that’s how. 

“Hard pounding, gentlemen,” said Wellington at Water¬ 
loo, “but we will see who can pound the longest.” 

Everyone admires a determined and persistent man. 
Marcus Morton ran sixteen times for governor of Massa¬ 
chusetts. At last his opponents voted for him from sheer 
admiration of his pluck, and he was elected by one majority. 
Successful men, it is said, owe more to their perseverance 
than to their natural powers. “How long did it take you 
to learn to play?” asked a young man of Geradini. “Twelve 
hours a day for twenty years,” replied the great violinist. 
Lyman Beecher’s father, when asked how long it took 
him to write his celebrated sermon on the “Government of 
God,” replied, “About forty years.” 

“General Taylor never surrenders,” said old “Rough 
and Ready,” at Buena Vista, when Santa Anna with 20,000 
men offered him a chance to save his 4,000 soldiers by 
capitulation; and all the world honors him for his victory. 

But if this persistent endurance, this staying power, is 
indispensible in all secular pursuits, so is it even more no¬ 
ticeably necessary in the spiritual life. Here, too, we need 
the never-surrender spirit, the power of persistency of 
purpose. Carlyle has said: “Every noble work at first 
seems impossible.” But, we may add, the seeming does 
not make it so. Success often depends on knowing just 
how much effort it will take in order to succeed. It is 
better to know, even if it does call for courage. He is a 
foolish shipman who dampens fires and cools off boilers 
half way across the Atlantic. It is wise to count on the 
whole voyage, and keep up the heat. If we have enlisted, 
or are thinking of enlisting under Christ, let us bear in 
mind that he only accepts soldiers for a life campaign. We 


i86 


THE CALL FOR CONTINUANCE 


shall find, and must expect to find, much occasion for pa¬ 
tient continuance. The soldier who stands fire to the last 
shot wins the victory; and only he that endureth unto the 
end shall be saved. 

Prayer: “Eternal Light, before whom all darkness is 
light, and, in comparison with whom every other light is 
but darkness! May it please thee to send forth thy light 
and thy truth, that they may lead us. Purify, we pray thee, 
our souls from all impure imaginations, that thy most beau¬ 
tiful and holy image may be again renewed within us, and, 
by contemplating thy glorious perfections, we may feel daily 
improved within us that Divine similitude, the perfection 
whereof we hope will at last make us forever happy in that 
full and beatific vision we aspire after. Till this most 
blessed day break, and the shadows flee away, let thy Spirit 
be continually with us, and may we feel the powerful ef¬ 
fects of thy Divine grace constantly directing and support¬ 
ing our steps; that all our endeavors, throughout the whole 
remaining part of our lives, may serve to promote the honor 
of thy blessed Name, through Jesus Christ our Lord. 
Amen.” 

Offer the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


ONE DAY AT A TIME 


Motto for the Week: “As thy days , so shall thy 
strength be” Deut. 33:25. 

Hymn: “ Wait, my soul upon the Lord” —William F. 
Loyd 

Scripture: Matt. 6:5-21. 

Meditation: ONE DAY AT A TIME. 

Text: “And the people shall go out and gather the por¬ 
tion of a day in his day.” Ex. 16:4. (Margin.) 

A doctor was once asked by a patient who met with a 
serious accident, “Doctor, how long shall I have to lie 
here?” The answer, “Only a day at a time,” taught the 
patient a precious lesson. It is the same lesson God taught 
his people, and the people of all ages since, through the 
method of his provision for Israel during their wilderness 
journey. The day’s portion in its day. Day by day the 
manna fell, enough for each day, and no more, and no less. 

I. Trust your Master by the day. The Christian life 
is a life of trust. The children of Israel received their 
manna “day by day,” just what they needed, all they could 
use, but no more and no less. So God promises us, not as 
thy weeks, or as thy months, but as thy days so shall thy 
strength be. And that means Monday’s grace for Mon¬ 
day, and Tuesday’s grace for Tuesday, and so on. Why 
then borrow trouble for the future? We are especially 
told by the Saviour not to take anxious thought for any 

187 


188 ONE DAY AT AT TIME 

tomorrow. The true rule is to live by the day. Live a life 
of trust. 

The law of divine grace is sufficient unto the day. The 
law of the divine deliverance is a very present help. The 
law of the divine guidance is step by step. One who car¬ 
ries a lantern on a dark road at night sees only a step be¬ 
fore him. If he takes that he carries the lantern forward 
and that makes another step plain. At length he reaches 
his destination in safety without once stepping into dark¬ 
ness. The whole way was made light to him though only 
a single step of it at a time. This is the method of God’s 
guidance, one step at a time. Thy word is a lamp. My 
grace is sufficient. The portion of a day is his day. Trust 
your Master by the day. 

II. Have fellowship with your Master by the day. The 
day’s portion for its day was given to Israel in the morning 
very early. This may serve to suggest to us how greatly 
the power to spend a day aright, to abide all the day in 
Jesus, depends on the morning hour. It is only when the 
believer each morning secures his quiet time in secret with 
his Master, regularly renewing living fellowship with his 
Saviour, that the abiding can be kept up all of the day. 
'‘Remember the morning watch!” was the last cry of a band 
of departing missionaries to their companions on the pier, 
as the steamer which carried them off to Asia cast off her 
hawser. “Remember the morning watch 1 ” we would call 
out to every professed disciple of Christ. Practice the 
presence of God. Have fellowship with your Master day 
by day. More imperative than any business engagement; 
more sacred than any matter of family concern; more im¬ 
portant than eating and sleeping make this daily engagement 
with God. Spend a time with your Master, in sweet fel¬ 
lowship with him. So doing you will be able to go out into 
each day and live that day “as seeing him who is invisible.” 


ONE DAY AT AT TIME 


189 


III. Serve your Master by the day. One day’s work 
at a time is all you are accountable for. There is but one 
working day and that is called Today. “Go work today in 
my vineyard.” “Work while it is called today, the night 
cometh.” Only a day at a time, that is all you will be ac¬ 
countable for. No one but a fool lives in tomorrow. 

In fact there is no tomorrow, for each tomorrow is to¬ 
day, when it comes. There never was a Christian strong 
enough to carry today’s duties with tomorrow’s worries 
piled on top of them. It is a blessed secret, this living by 
the day. 

Prayer: “O God, we desire to put our lives into thy 
hands. Take our wills and make them thine. Lead us 
into the truth, we beseech thee. Help us ever to hold sin¬ 
cere converse with our own souls and never speak unto 
them what we feel to be untrue or exaggerated. We seek 
thy guidance and counsel, not that we may escape the toil 
and the burdens and the pains of life, but that our suffer¬ 
ing and our labor be not in vain. Order our footsteps 
aright, lead us in the way everlasting, the way that passes 
by the Cross and leads up to the throne of God and of the 
Lamb. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


THE DIVINE AND THE HUMAN IN THE 
CHURCH 


Motto for the Week: “I will be with thee; I will not 
fail thee, nor forsake thee.” Joshua 115. 

Hymn: “Onward Christian soldiers marching as to 
war” —S. Baring-Gould. 

Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-24. 

Meditation: THE DIVINE AND THE HUMAN IN 
THE CHURCH. 

Text: “The szvord of the Lord and of Gideon.” Judges 
7:20. 

About a mile east of the village of Jezreel is the famous 
fountain known as the Spring of Harod. It issues from a 
great cavern near the base of Mount Gilboa. It is known 
by the natives as Ain Jalud and by travelers popularly as the 
“Fountain of Gideon.” This fountain is the principal 
source of the River Jalud, which flows away down the val¬ 
ley of Jezreel into the Jordan. At the present time the 
fountain head is about fifteen feet wide and two feet deep, 
and is partly surrounded with reeds and rushes. It widens 
out below into a pool about fifty feet wide. The sloping 
ground thereabout, within easy reach of the fountain, has 
been a favorite resort for herdsmen and camping place for 
caravans and military bands in all ages. It was here that 
the three hundred men were chosen by Gideon to go against 
the Midianites; for the l ord had said to Gideon, “By the 

190 


THE DIVINE AND THE HUMAN IN THE CHURCH 191 

three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver 
the Midianites into thine hand.” As we recently stood on 
the hill at Jezreel and looked across the valley, here about 
four miles wide, bounded on the north by the Hill of Moreh 
and on the south by Mount Gilboa, and thought of the Mid¬ 
ianites spread out in this valley, we thought how exactly 
the locality fits in with the narrative of Gideon’s campaign. 

But let us not take space to describe the campaign or 
the great victory in the battle of the pitchers. Of these you 
may read in chapters six and seven. Instead, let us gather 
up a few lessons, and especially in connection with the 
thought of the Divine and the Human in the Church. 

I. The first fact is that God does use human instru¬ 
ments. He sends no angels to preach or teach or make 
known his Gospel,—to win victories for his Church. He 
uses us. He used Gideon and his men. The shout was 
“The sword of the Lord and of Gideon.” It was God’s 
sword in a man’s hand that won the victory. The fight was 
not by God alone. It was not by Gideon alone. It was 
God and Gideon allied. God was using a willing and ready 
and brave man. “We are laborers together with God.” 

God’s cause has enemies and he summons us to the bat¬ 
tle for the right. Gideon blew his trumpet and first gath¬ 
ered his own clan into the nucleus of an army. Then he 
sent messengers througout the land with a summons to 
battle. “His summons reminds us,” says a recent writer, 
“of the beautiful custom of ancient Scotland of assembling 
their clans by means of the fiery cross. A light cross of 
wood was charred at the point, and the flames quenched in 
the blood of a goat. This was sent around to the homes 
and villages of the clan, each one sending it to his next 
neighbor, with only the name of the meeting-place. And 
every one was bound under fearful anathemas to obey the 
sign.” The summons was swift and sure; the response was 


192 THE DIVINE AND THE HUMAN IN THE CHURCH 


instant and universal. Respond to the call for your aid in 
the Church of Christ against the enemies of Christ. God’s 
cause needs leaders and he gets them from among those who 
are already occupied. He found Gideon not among idlers, 
but, at his work,—just as he found Moses and David keep¬ 
ing sheep, Elisha plowing, and as Christ found Peter and 
other Apostles fishing. Gideon was threshing wheat. God 
called him to thrash his enemies. 

A few men of the right sort are better than many only 
half-hearted. Gideon’s army numbered 32,000. The timid 
were allowed to go home. Twenty-two thousand went. The 
remaining ten thousand were commanded to drink from the 
Spring of Harod. Only those were chosen who crouched, 
lapping up the water with open hand, their eyes upon the 
enemy, possibly concealed in the rushes. Of these there 
were only three hundred. This was a sensible test, for 
those who stooped to drink did not appreciate the situa¬ 
tion, and a few such men might defeat the tactics of Gideon. 
God tests his servants before he calls them. The self-in¬ 
dulgent and unwatchful are not used. 

Confidence is necessary in those who would fight God’s 
battles. Mr. Moody used often to say, “God never uses a 
discouraged man.” Have faith in God. Have faith that 
he intends to use you. Gideon was prepared for his battle 
by being encouraged. He was told the soldier’s dream and 
was sure of overcoming. 

II. God uses human instruments, but the instruments 
must be prepared for his use. 

We have already shown some of the steps in the prepara¬ 
tion of Gideon and his men. They were men already en¬ 
gaged, not indolent and inactive. They were men who stood 
a special test. They were men of alertness and strong 
heart. How do we know when men are available? As 
with the Israelites, our characters are tested by very little 


THE DIVINE AND THE HUMAN IN THE CHURCH 193 

actions. The test is usually applied when we are uncon¬ 
scious of it. 

A boy applied to a banker for a position. He was told 
that there was no place vacant at the time. The boy turned 
regretfully away, but noticing a pin on the floor picked it 
up and laid it on the table. As he started out the officer 
of the bank called him back and said: “We want you. We 
will make a place for you.” Character is revealed by very 
trivial actions. That boy became the leading financier of 
France. His little act showed a boy with careful habits. 

We are best prepared for larger work by doing lesser 
duties well. He that is faithful in that which is least, is 
faithful also in that which is much. Do today’s duties 
well, no matter how trivial they may seem. Faithfulness 
in the simplest duties is training for and the road to the 
being chosen to do the highest duties. 

III. Through these prepared men God won a great 
victory. 

In three companies the men of Israel stole around the 
Midianites at night. Each man carried a horn, a water 
pitcher, and a torch. The torch was placed in the pitcher, 
just as the natives now carry a light on windy nights. At 
a given signal the men in the companies surrounding the 
Midianites, smashed their pitchers, raised their torches, 
blew their trumpets, and shouted, “The sword of the Lord 
and of Gideon!” The rout was complete. The crash of 
the pitchers, like the noise of many chariots, the sound of 
horns, like from the leaders of regiments, and the glare of 
the torches, always impressive at night, and especially so to 
persons just suddenly aroused from sleep—these things led 
the enemy to think that they were surrounded by a vast 
host. They fled in tumultous flight down the descent toward 
the Jordan fords, and unable to distinguish friend from foe 


194 THE DIVINE AND THE HUMAN IN THE CHURCH 

they struck out at all and slew one another in their own 
company, resulting in a very great defeat and slaughter. 

IV. God would have us do our part, and yet when we 
have done all and the victory is won it is his. “One with 
God is always a majority.” Sometimes he wins by a few 
just to teach us that he can win with a few. If many 
were used the soldiers might think they had gotten the 
victory through their own might. It is a privilege to be 
used. The victory is God’s. 

Prayer: “O God, grant unto us that we be not unwise, 
but understanding thy will; not slothful, but diligent in thy 
work; that we run not as uncertainly, nor fight thy battles 
as those that beat the air. Whatsoever our hand findeth to 
do, may we do it with our might; that when thou shalt 
call thy laborers to give them their reward, we may so have 
run that we may obtain; so have fought the good fight, as 
to receive the crown of eternal life; through Jesus Christ 
our Lord. Amen.” 

Repeat the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


THE FORM AND POWER OF 
GODLINESS 


Motto for the Week: “Behold, thou desirest truth in 
the inward parts” Psalm 51:6. 

Hymn: “Christian seek not yet repose” —Charlotte El¬ 
liott. 

Scripture: Psalm 51 :i-i9. 

Meditation: THE FORM AND THE POWER OF 
GODLINESS. 

Text: “Having the form of godliness, hut denying the 
power thereof; from such turn away.” 2 Tina. 3 :5. 

“Godliness” is another word for religion, or Christianity. 
Sometimes the term is used to refer more particularly to 
that part of our religion which concerns our duty to God 
Himself; but here we regard it as including the whole of 
genuine religion. When we speak of a “form” we refer 
to a draft or outline or a sketch of anything, or the exter¬ 
nal figure or appearance of it. The form of godliness is 
that part of it which is external, which we can see, which 
is visible to our senses. 

1 . We notice first, then, that godliness has a form. 

It has a form of conception. Rom. 2:2o. It has forms 
of words to express the conceptions. 2 Tim. 1 :i3. “Hold 
fast the form of sound words.” We find in the Scriptures, 
in creeds and confessions and articles of faith, excellent 
forms of words to express religious conceptions. 

i95 


196 THE FORM AND POWER OF GODLINESS 


It has forms of worship; and the man who has the form 
of godliness usually attends some place of religious wor¬ 
ship, hears some ministers of religion, reads the Scrip¬ 
tures, and pays attention to prayer both in publ ic and pri¬ 
vate. 

Godliness takes form also in the practice of moral du¬ 
ties. A man who practices the form of godliness is hottest. 
He avoids all acts of theft or robbery, keeps his hands 
from pilfering and stealing, pays his debts promptly, and 
never takes advantage of another’s ignorance 'Dr necessity 
in buying or selling. Such a man is also true; he puts away 
lying and speaks truth with his neighbor. The man who 
practices the form of godliness is also charitable and be¬ 
nevolent. Indeed, he is careful to observe all the forms of 
moral rectitude, sobriety, honesty, integrity, charity, etc. 

II. But notice, secondly, that godliness has not only a 
form, but a power. 

The essence of every genuine existence is a power. The 
letters of a word constitute its form; but the meaning of 
the word is its power. The outward fact of Christ’s resur¬ 
rection is its form; the spiritual essence or significance is 
its power. The words which convey the Gospel make up 
its form; but that which is conveyed is its power. This is 
true in the highest sense of “godliness,” which is eminently 
a “power;” indeed the greatest among men because it is the 
channel whereby we communicate with the truth and love 
and life of God, our Maker. 

The power of godliness is the power of truth. A won¬ 
derful transformation takes place when truth enters into 
the soul of a man. Sometimes we can almost see its work¬ 
ings. For example, here is a poor, degraded, lost man. 
Passing along the street he happens carelessly to stroll into 
a place of religious worship. Suddenly some truth fixes 
itself upon his mind, finds way to his understanding and 


THE FORM AND POWER OF GODLINESS 


19 7 


his conscience, and it works invisibly until the man has be¬ 
come a new creature in Christ Jesus. I Cor. 1:18. 

The power of godliness is the power of love. Love is 
a powerful passion, and where the vital force of godliness 
is felt the love of God is shed abroad in the heart, and it 
is manifested in the strong attachment to him, and inward 
delight, which Christians feel in worshipping God in spirit 
and in truth and in doing his will. 

The power of godliness is the power of faith. Faith is 
mighty in its operations. All the acts of heroism accom¬ 
plished by the Old Testament saints are attributed to faith. 
Enoch was translated by faith; Noah built the ark by faith; 
Abraham offered Isaac by faith; and Gideon, Barak, Samp¬ 
son, Jephtha, David, Samuel, and all the prophets, through 
faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, etc., Heb. 
11. Faith overcomes the world. I John 5:4, 5. Faith 
quenches all the fiery darts of the evil one. Eph. 4:16. All 
things are possible to him that believeth. Mark 11 '. 23 . 

The power of godliness is the power of the Holy Ghost. 
His power is given unto us and by His power we prevail. 
Zech. 4:6. 

III. But we must notice lastly, a very important fact, 
namely that it is quite possible for persons to have the form 
of godliness while denying, or lacking, the power thereof. 

There are many people who have a true conception of 
religion, who stand bv the form of sound words which ex¬ 
presses the conceptions of religion, who go through the 
forms of worship which religion requires and who even 
practice well the moral duties demanded by religion and yet 
who have no religion. They, have the form of godliness but 
deny the power thereof. At the Eden Musem in New York, 
we once saw a large collection of wax-work men. They 
were all outside. They were very fair to look upon, but 


198 THE FORM AND POWER OF GODLINESS 


they had no soul, no life. They were outside and nothing 
else. Let us not forget that there are wax-work Christians, 
too. Like Barnum’s Siamese twins, they may move and 
breathe and seem to be alive, but it is all a sham, for though 
they have the form of godliness they deny the power 
thereof. Thus a man may have the logic of godliness, the 
words of godliness, the litany, the music, the architecture 
of godliness; but if he have not godliness itself he is as 
cold and dead and more useless than a figure of wax. 

Let us beware of thinking of religion as a matter of 
going through with forms. The old monks of York Min¬ 
ster used to think that duty could be done and merit massed 
by walking around the arches of the solemn cathedral in 
sedate procession. According to their accurate measure¬ 
ment, twelve rounds made one mile of marching virtue. 
There yet may be seen holes in a board at the great portal, 
supplied with pegs, with which they checked off their re¬ 
ligion. But those old monks are not the only people who 
have made the mistake of supposing that going through so 
many forms meant just that much religion. You may go 
through forms and have religion; but let us guard care¬ 
fully against the mistake of thinking that religion itself 
consists in going through the forms. 

Again, let us obey the text by being ware of the people 
who have the form of godliness but deny the power 
thereof. The direction given is, “From such turn away.” 
The possession of the form without the power disposes men 
to the denial of the power. He who has the form alone is 
apt to be satisfied with the form, and to resent as an im¬ 
pertinence and insult to himself the demand for anything 
further. He denies the necessity. Some deny by disown¬ 
ing the necessity for true religion; some by ignoring it; 
some by resorting to forms. Both inclination and self-in- 


THE FORM AND POWER OF GODLINESS 199 

terest should lead us to turn away from such. Not in en¬ 
mity toward them, but in the sense of not walking with 
them or finding delight in their ways. Two cannot walk 
together except they be agreed. You can get no good from 
those who deny the power of godliness; but you may get 
much evil. 

Prayer: “We give thee thanks, Almighty God, for 
the bread of the body that perisheth, and we beseech thee 
to give us that bread by which man’s higher life is fed, 
that w^daying hold of the life that never dies, may thereby 
be fitted for the troubles and burdens of this life, and look 
forward with joy to the higher and better life. So may we 
live in constant childlike trust in thee, as to believe, though 
we behold it not, that the end of all things is divine, and 
to catch the music to which this world is set by thee. Lead 
thou us from the lower life to the better life, that little 
things may lose their power to vex us, and in the midst of 
the troubles of this life, we may have the peace of God 
that passeth all understanding. Of thy loving-kindness 
and tender mercy hear us, through Jesus Christ our Lord. 
Amen.” 

Offer the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE- 
SOUGHT 


Motto for the Week: “Seek ye first the kingdom of 
God and his righteousness ” Matt. 6:33. 

Hymn: “Art thou weary, art thou languid ?”—John M. 
Neale. 

Scripture: Rev. 22:1-21. 

Meditation: THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE- 
SOUGHT. 

Text: “The kingdom of heaven is like unto a mer¬ 
chantman seeking goodly pearls ” Matt. 13:45. 

Life is a search for goodly pearls. In business, in 
thinking, in art, in literature, in all that we do we are seek¬ 
ing for pearls of the greatest worth, the very best attain¬ 
able. 

In this parable Christ did not for one moment condemn 
this quest. He takes human nature as it is and appeals 
to it. He appeals to the restless anxious search of the 
human heart for the highest good, and tells us that it is 
this very motive, this very purpose and ambition that the 
kingdom of heaven came to satisfy. If you desire the 
secret of the success of the religion of Christ you will find 
it here. Religion is an appeal to something within us. 
It meets a felt necessity. We are all soul hungry; it of¬ 
fers us the “bread of life.” We are thirsty; it puts to 
our lips “the water of life.” We long to be rich; it 

200 


THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE—SOUGHT 


201 


puts within our grasp the “pearl of great price.” We 
have with'm us longings which refuse to be satisfied by 
the little gems we may gather from the sand upon the 
shores of our earthly existence, but the kingdom of heaven 
ofifers us one pearl of great price for which we should be 
glad to sell all that we have in order to make that one 
our own. 

I. This parable sets forth, first, the exceeding worth 
of salvation through Christ. 

The spiritual blessings laid up in Christ are set before 
us as so rich that all other good becomes comparatively 
worthless. The merchant, when he found one pearl of 
great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. 
Christianity claims to be of the utmost importance to 
every one of us. Do we usually regard it so, or do we 
give it only a secondary place in our lives? Can we say 
with Paul: “Yea, doubtless, and I count all things but 
loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus 
my Lord” ? “What things were gain to me, those I 
counted loss for Christ”? Do we count all else but as 
nothing that we may win Christ? Men have parted with 
all they had for the kingdom of heaven's sake. They 
have subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, stopped 
the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped 
the edge of the sword; they have endured cruel mockings 
and scourgings, they have been stoned, sawn asunder, 
slain with the sword; they have wandered about in sheep¬ 
skins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented, 
all that they might win Christ and have the pearl of great 
price as their treasure. And we believe they acted wisely 
in it all, and that this is the teaching of this parable. It 
is just such wisdom the Bible sets forth as “better than 
rubies,” and all the things that can be desired are “not to 
be compared to her.” “Man knoweth not the price thereof. 


202 


THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE—SOUGHT 


It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the 
precious onyx, or the sapphire. The gold and the crystal 
cannot equal it; and the exchange of it shall not be for 
jewels of fine gold. ,, 

Does it pay to be a Christian? Can you invest in any¬ 
thing better? Put religion to the test, try the gold in the 
furnace, bring the pearl to the jeweler and see whether its 
value is quoted too high. Find out whether salvation “rules 
too high” on our spiritual exchanges. Do you not find 
the pearl too precious to be dissolved, like the Egyptian 
queen’s in a cup of sinful pleasure?* Is it not too glorious 
to be sold, like Esau’s birthright for one mess of pot¬ 
tage? Who can estimate the value of the soul? Who can 
tell in dollars and cents the exceeding value of salvation 
of the pearl of great price? The teaching is, that religion 
is the very most important thing in all this world to every 
one of us. 

II. Notice, again, that the duty of obtaining this pearl 
is an appeal to common sense. This is shown by the ref¬ 
erence to the conduct of a merchantman. Now, none of 
us doubt the energy, the prudence, the common-sense of 
merchantmen. We glory in the strength of character and 
sagacity of mind developed by business. These very traits 
of merchantmen are recognized in this parable. Chris¬ 
tianity is willing to submit its claims to the test of business 
principles. The kingdom of heaven is like unto a mer¬ 
chantman;—like the best business man among us, with an 
eye as keen and a wisdom as far-seeing. The kingdom of 
heaven is not like some dreamer, some impractical man 
who begins to build not knowing whether he will be able 
to finish, or who invests without carefully weighing the 
chances of profit; but it is like unto a merchantman,—one 
who counts the cost, who lays his plans, who keeps his 
books, and who acts with both wisdom and energy. And 


THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE—SOUGHT 203 

so this parable should appeal to all, and especially to 
people who claim to possess business force. Some people 
seem to think that religion only appeals to children and 
weaklings, but has nothing for strong men with strong 
minds and stirring nature. But how different is the fact. 
It comes to the active practical farmer and says: “You 
know, ‘Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap’; 
well, ‘He that soweth to the flesh shall of the flesh reap 
corruption, but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the 
Spirit reap life everlasting.’ ” It asks you. “Do men gather 
grapes of thorns or figs or thistles? Can a good tree 
bring forth evil fruit or a corrupt tree good fruit?” It 
comes to the scholar and the philosopher, and says: “Prove 
all things; hold fast that which is good.” The religion 
of Christ demands that it be put to the test. It is not 
afraid of the light. It addresses men as rational crea¬ 
tures. It appeals to reason and bids wise men judge, 
calmly, intelligently, searchingly and honestly of its claims. 
That is the same as saying, If you are convinced of the 
importance of salvation why don’t you accept it? It appeals 
to the prudent mechanic and says: “Which of you in¬ 
tending to build, sitteth not down first and counteth the 
cost, whether he have sufficient to finish?” That means 
if you enlist at all you should enlist for life. It comes 
to the shrewd business man and puts a question of profit 
and loss, of exchange, and says: “What shall it profit a 
man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul, or 
what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” And 
that means that there is nothing in this world so important 
to one as his soul’s salvation. So Christianity appeals to 
us all in every department of life, and asks us to consider 
its claims, to bring them to the test of common sense. If 
this life ends all, surely we may as well eat and drink, for 
tomorrow we die. But if there is a “kingdom of heaven” 


204 THE pearl of great price—sought 

where we may live forever, or a “kingdom of darkness” 
where men are lost is it then not the wise and manly and 
common-sense thing to do, to look the claims of religion 
squarely in the face? Let us put the gold to the test. 
Let us weigh the pearl in the balance, and see if it will 
pay to invest. 

“I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire that 
thou mayest be rich ; and white raiment that thou mayest 
be clothed, and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve that thou 
mayest see.” “Wherefore do ye spend money for that 
which is not bread and your labor for that which satisfieth 
not? hearken diligently unto me and eat ye that which is 
good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.” Set out 
on the quest for the Pearl of Great Price. 

Prayer: “O Loving Father, hear us, thy children, as 
we pray. We need thy presence every passing hour. Be 
ready to hear us, we beseech thee. Life is a struggle 
against sin. On every hand temptation assails us. Some¬ 
times we know its coming and resist. Sometimes we yield. 
Oh, give us wisdom always to know, and grace and strength 
always to overcome We do long to become more and 
more like Jesus. We are not ashamed of his gospel. We 
have found it to be power unto salvation. Let us never 
bring reproach upon his name by any act or word. Let us 
never harm a single harmless soul. May the spirit of love 
become in us a controlling power. Keep us gentle, peace¬ 
ful, tender, thoughtful, true. Let the spirit of contention 
cease to operate as now in the hearts of men. Even in 
thy Church there is bickering and strife. Make this to 
cease, O our God. Once more we profess our love for 
thee. Accept us, Father, we beseech thee. May Jesus 
as the revelation of thy love, thy perfect love, become our 
inspiration. So shall our lives glorify thee. And with 


THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE—SOUGHT 205 

all this grant to us the forgiveness of our sins. We ask it 
as so often we have asked in the name and for the sake 
of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


THE FOLLY OF MOTE-PULLING 


Motto for the Week: “Charity stiffereth long, and is 
kind” I Cor. 13:4. 

Hymn: “Blest he the tie that binds” —John Fawcett. 

Scripture: Col. 3:1-17. 

Meditation: THE FOLLY OF MOTE-PULLING. 

Text: “Judge not, that ye he not judged” etc. Matt. 
7:1-6. 

Fault-finding is not in itself a sin. On the contrary it 
is often a duty. The old Levitical law said, “Thou shalt 
in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon 
him.” And under the New Testament law of love there 
is the exhortation: “Reprove, rebuke, with all long-suf¬ 
fering and doctrine.” But, as some one has well said, “A 
duty may become a sin if wrongfully done.” The spirit 
of the Christian is the spirit of love and gentleness. Yet 
there are times when he must rebuke sin and take no com¬ 
promising position in the presence of evil. To be cen¬ 
sorious, however, is to be un-Christlike and disobedient to 
his wish. 

But there are certain things to be said about mote-pull¬ 
ing and beam-pulling. The first is: 

I. Take care that, you get them in the right order. 
Beam-pulling comes first. “First cast out the beam that 
is in thine own eye.” Following that simple direction would 
stop a lot of mote-pulling. “Physician, heal thyself.” 
“Wherefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou 

206 


THE FOLLY OF MOTE-PULLING 


20 7 


art that judgest; for wherein thou judgest another thou 
condemnest thyself, because thou doest the same thing.” 

II. Secondly, bear in mind that mote-pulling is danger¬ 
ous business. In judging others we court judgment upon 
ourselves. A Spanish proverb says: “If our faults were 
written on our foreheads we should have to go with our 
hats pulled over our eyes.” Another familiar proverb says 
that “people who live in glass houses should never throw 
stones.” 

“Before you mark another’s sin 
Bid thine own conscience look within.” 

Mote-pulling is often the unconscious result of an un¬ 
forgiving spirit. If we do not forgive others God cannot 
forgive us. So both from his fellow-men and from God 
there is danger to the man who judges his brother—who 
enters unwisely into the mote-pulling business. 

III. Thirdly, mote-pulling is frequently a very hypo¬ 
critical performance. If we have studied ourselves care¬ 
fully most of us have found that in proportion as we have 
become quick to discern the faults of others we have less 
and less discerned our own shortcomings. Frequently 
when we have found faults in others they were but re¬ 
flections of faults in our own lives. “It takes a rogue to 
catch a rogue.” There are a good many sins that if we 
did not indulge so much ourselves we would not see so 
plainly in our fellow-men. 

IV. Then, too, mote-pulling is oftentimes a most use¬ 
less performance. It certainly is useless so long as there 
is plainly visible inconsistency in our own lives. 

V. Therefore, mote-puller, take care. It is a delicate 
matter to pluck a mote or a cinder out of an inflamed eye. 
Take care how you do it. First be sure your hands are 
clean. That does not mean that we must live sinless lives 


208 


THE FOLLY OF MOTE-PULLING 


before we can begin to help others; but it does mean that 
we must be right with God, and show also by our spirit 
that it is our constant aim to be and to do that which we 
are asking of others. 

Take care that you do your mote-pulling very tenderly 
and gently also. It requires a great deal of tact and ten¬ 
derness to help a brother by finding fault with him; though 
it can be done. 

VI. Before you begin change places. Change places 
with the one you mean to help. It is best to begin that 
way; for you will have to change places before you get 
through. “For with what measure ye mete it shall be 
measured unto you again.” As a man soweth in his judg¬ 
ment of others, so shall he reap. 

VII. Put on charity as a garment. Recognizing the 
danger, the delicacy, the importance of the work, being in 
right relations with God and with your fellow-men, re¬ 
solved on great tact and tenderness, with a clear con¬ 
science, clean hands and clothed in the white robes of 
charity, you are in a condition to do good in the ministry 
of reproof. But do not forget this last condition, to put 
on charity as a garment. “Charity suffereth long and is 
kind; charity envieth not; doth not behave itself un¬ 
seemly, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil.” 

Prayer: “O Lord, grant to us so to love thee with all 
our heart, with all our mind, and all our soul, and our 
neighbor for thy sake; that the grace of charity and broth¬ 
erly love may dwell in us, and all envy, harshness, and 
ill-will may die in us; and fill our hearts with feelings of 
love, kindness, and compassion, so that, by constantly re¬ 
joicing in the happiness and good success of others, by 
sympathizing with them in their sorrows, and putting away 


THE FOLLY OF MOTE-PULLING 


209 


all harsh judgments, and envious thoughts, we may fol¬ 
low thee, who art thyself the true and perfect Love. 

Pour upon us, O Lord, the spirit of brotherly kindness 
and peace; so that, sprinkled with the dew of thy ben¬ 
ediction, we may be made glad by thy glory and grace; 
through Christ our Lord. Amen.” 

Unite together in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


TRUE CHRISTIAN SOLDIERSHIP 


Motto for the Week: “Put on the whole armor of 
God.” Eph. 6:11. 

Hymn: “A charge to keep I have.” —Charles Wesley. 

Scripture: Eph. 6:10-24. 

Meditation: TRUE CHRISTIAN SOLDIERSHIP. 

Text: “The zveapons of our warfare are not carnal, 
but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong¬ 
holds.” 2 Cor. 10:4. 

War seems always to be popular, even among the most 
civilized people. Man has a belligerent instinct. But that 
does not imply that it is right to fight his fellow-man. It 
was placed within him to inspire him to a conquest of na¬ 
ture, and of his physical propensities, and of his moral 
and spiritual enemies. Through it the race is advanced. 
Here is the region for his heroism. Here he may show the 
soldier qualities, better than fighting his brother at home or 
abroad. He has plenty of the worst antagonists at his own 
door. Let him fight them and win the title of a ‘‘good sol¬ 
dier of Jesus Christ.” 

The passage we are to study leads us to notice the war¬ 
fare, the weapons, and the victories of true soldiership. 

I. The warfare. The Christian warfare is different 
from all other scenes of conflict. Most wars originate from 
beneath, from the evil passions of men. Not so the Chris- 
tion warfare. Its origin is divine and heavenly and its 
aims the same. Most earthly wars arise from avarice, am- 

210 


TRUE CHRISTIAN SOLDIERSHIP 211 

bition, or desire for revenge. But not so the Christian war¬ 
fare ; it is based upon righteousness; it is fought in the in¬ 
terests of the cause of truth and justice and equity,—of 
peace and holiness and blessedness. Earthly wars aim at 
spreading misery, devastation and death. The Christian 
warfare spreads comfort, health, felicity, life. It is one 
of compassion, of tenderest goodness, of sweetest mercy. 
The banners, paradoxical as it may appear, bear the sym¬ 
bol of a Lamb, and their motto is “Glory to God in the 
highest, and on earth peace, good-will toward men.” 

II. The weapons. They are described both negatively 
and positively. Negatively: They are “not carnal.” There 
are some weapons the Christian is to disown and not to 
use. His religion is never to be spread, as was Moham¬ 
medanism, by the sword. Christ told Peter in the garden 
to put up his sword. That was a final direction for his fol¬ 
lowers. 

They are not coercive. For centuries civil magistrates 
sought by exactions and penalities to force the religion of 
Christ upon the consciences of men. Ecclesiastical author¬ 
ities have tried the same means. Such weapons disgrace 
and misrepresent our religion and were proscribed by its 
Founder. 

They are not crafty. When men have been prevented 
from using carnal weapons or coercive, they have fallen 
back on those that are crafty. They have used false rea¬ 
soning and philosophy. They have invented mysteries, 
planted prejudices, played upon men’s credulity, employed 
tricks of rhetoric, the assumptions of priests, or the “clap¬ 
trap” of all sorts of craftiness. These weapons are all 
carnal, and they should all be totally disowned by Chris¬ 
tians. 

Positively. Though not carnal they are mighty. As to 
efficiency, they are “mighty through God.” Our weapons 


212 


TRUE CHRISTIAN SOLDIERSHIP 


are the truths of the Gospel,” the sword of the Spirit, 
which is the word of God.” Used plainly, simply, yet 
strongly and earnestly, they are absolutely effective in 
“pulling down the strongholds” of sin and Satan. One of 
the strongholds of Satan is ignorance. He blinds the eyes 
of his votaries. Ignorance is essential to the duration of 
his kingdom. Another of his strongholds is prejudice, 
which is the general result of ignorance. Pride is another 
barrier he erects against the salvation of the soul. It is 
one of the strongest and last to be given up. Mammon is 
another. Love of this present world, materialism, is in¬ 
deed one of Satan’s most effective strongholds. Unbe¬ 
lief, the rejection of truth is another. But the “sword of 
the Spirit” is supreme against them all. The stronghold 
of ignorance is overthrown by the gospel of truth. The 
stronghold of prejudice is undermined by the simple facts 
and statements of the gospel. The stronghold of pride is 
brought low by the revelation of the realities and glories 
of another world. The stronghold of mammon is reduced 
to naught by men coming to appreciate the riches that fade 
not away. The stronghold of unbelief falls before the 
self-evidencing power of the religion of Christ. The gos¬ 
pel can do all this. It is God’s own instrument. It is full 
of the wisdom and power of God. It is mighty through 
God to the pulling down of strongholds. 

III. The victories. What are they? We have already 
indicated many of them. But let us classify them. 

They are mental. Paul is speaking about “imagina¬ 
tions,” and things pertaining to the mind. The victories 
of true soldiership are Over mind. It is not much credit 
to a man to conquer a lion or a bear or some enemy from 
the animal creation. A man only conquers himself when 
he conquers his mind. The victories of true soldiership 


TRUE CHRISTIAN SOLDIERSHIP 


213 


are mental victories, victories of the supremacy of truth 
over ignorance, over prejudice, and over unbelief. 

They are moral. They are corrective. They are tri¬ 
umphs of right and justice and purity and love. They 
transform the world. They destroy evil and enthrone the 
good. 

They are spiritual. They are not alone such as make 
the world a better, happier, safer place to live in. They 
are more than mental and moral victories, for they are 
definitely Christian. They are victories won for Christ and 
the things of Christ. They “bring into captivity every 
thought to the obedience of Christ.” They promote the 
cause of Christ, the kingdom of Christ, and in their tri¬ 
umphs will ultimately enthrone in universal dominion the 
King of the kingdom of truth, Christ Himself. 

Prayer: “We confess unto thee, O God, how weak 
we are in ourselves, how powerless to do the work of life, 
now prone to selfishness and sin. We beseech thee to grant 
us strength, the strength of thy Spirit, the power of thy 
Christ, wherein we can do all things. Enable us thus to 
repress every selfish propensity, every wilful purpose, every 
unkind feeling, every thought and word and deed of anger 
and impatience, and to cherish perfect love, constant kind¬ 
ness, to think pure thoughts, to speak gentle words, to do 
helpful and generous deeds. . Raise our minds to the con¬ 
templation of thy beloved Son, that, seeing his divine 
beauty, we may be drawn near unto him, and changed into 
his image, and empowered to bring every thought into obe¬ 
dience to Christ, into harmony with his Spirit and his im¬ 
mortal life. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


DECAPITATED TEMPTATIONS 


Motto for the Week: “Blessed is he that endureth 
temptation .” James i :i2. 

Hymn: “Yield not to temptation” —H. R. Palmer. 

Scripture: James i :i2-27. 

Meditation: DECAPITATED TEMPTATIONS. 

Text: “Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Phil¬ 
istine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath 
thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith.” 
I Sam. 17:51. 

This incident regarding David and Goliath may rightly 
be used, we think, as a parable teaching' us the wisdom 
and duty of decapitating our temptations. David had won 
the victory over Goliath, but one act more was needed to 
make sure. The giant had fallen, but perhaps he was not 
finished. David would run no risk on this point. With 
him it was a fight to the finish, and the finish was a decap¬ 
itated Philistine. This is the sort of victory we ought to 
accomplish in our battle with our temptations. But too 
often is this not the way with us?— 

I. Sometimes our temptations are only wounded Phil¬ 
istines. 

This is a point where we often stop short and fail to 
carry out and make sure our victory. David did not know 
but that Goliath might be only stunned by the stone. A 
half victory is not victory. We often wound a temptation 
and get it down, but leave it in such a condition that it can 

214 


DECAPITATED TEMPTATIONS 215 

recover, regain its feet, and presently we find it necessary 
to fight that very same giant again. That this is very poor 
policy in the spiritual warfare we must all admit. 

II. Sometimes our temptations are only frightened 
Philistines. 

Too often it is with us as it would have been with David 
had he only succeeded in frightening Goliath from the 
field. We chase temptations off the field, but they live to 
fight another day. They come back with renewed strength 
and equipment for the battle, and overcome us in the end. 
Our victory over a giant is not won and our future made 
secure until we stand upon its prostrate form, and take 
its sword, and slay it, and cut off its head. 

III. Sometimes our temptations are Philistines com¬ 
promised with. 

Too often we only make a feint at fighting our sins, and 
are in secret league with them, only too willing to know 
they are only scotched and not dead. Compromises are 
dangerous. Many professed Christians provoke tempta¬ 
tion; they put themselves in such relations to companions, 
places, and dissipations as to invite attack. They “set on 
fire the course of nature,” superinduce conflict and the 
mastery of some giant sin, and then complain of the trials 
of life. What would you think of the consistency of a boy 
who should throw stones through a hornet’s nest until the 
air is filled with humming exasperation and flying wrath, 
and then ask his father to keep the hornets away, appease 
their anger, or neutralize their sting? Such ventures would 
be pronounced folly, because it is the nature of such ag¬ 
gravation to punish interference. And let us not whimper 
about inherited appetites, either; at least not so long as 
we encourage them by compromise. To Dr. Tanner, while 
engaged in his famous fast, a visitor said, “Don’t you long 
for dinner and imagine you see a fine breakfast ?” The 


2 l6 


DECAPITATED TEMPTATIONS 


wiry little Englishman, with a look of great resolution, 
said, “I don’t allow myself to think of such things.” Epic¬ 
tetus said that what we ought not to do, we ought not to 
think of doing. “If you don’t mean to trade with Satan, 
you must keep out of his shop.” Never compromise with 
evil. 

IV. David’s way with Goliath is the only proper way 
for us to treat our Philistine enemies of temptation; decap¬ 
itate them. 

The true soldier of righteousness shoots to kill. With 
him it is war to the death against evil, and he only leaves 
off when its head is off. Give no quarter to your sins. 
You have got to down with them or they will down with 
you. If you do not slay them they will slay you. A 
wounded temptation may come back upon you, but a de¬ 
capitated temptation will trouble you no more. Don’t try 
to wound, or frighten or compromise with sin, but cut 
with the sword and slay it; cut off its head, decapitate, and 
thus be done with it. This should be the attitude of every 
Christian toward sin; if not, we are liable at any moment 
to be overcome of sin. 

“To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me on 
my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down 
with my Father on his throne.” 

Prayer: “When we are awake, we are still with thee, 
O God most merciful, and thy hand is over us for good. 
Be thou the Desire of our hearts, and the Ruler of our 
thoughts. O heavenly Father, we need thy love and thy 
calm breath shed around in our souls to be a fountain of 
strength; we know not without thee what may befall us 
this day, either of peril, or of temptation, or of sorrow. 
But thou canst put a guard about our path, and canst 
fence all our senses from temptation by sobering them 


DECAPITATED TEMPTATIONS 


21 7 


with thy holy fear. Give us, then, we pray thee, a right 
sense of duty, to shield us in all conflict, and guard us 
against sin and death. Lead us not into temptation; or, 
when we are tempted, deliver us by humble watchfulness 
from all power of evil. We ask through Christ, our 
Lord and Saviour. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


PRESUMPTUOUS SINS 


Motto for the Week: “Watch and pray, that ye enter 
not into temptation ” Matt. 26:41. 

Hymn: “My soul be on thy guard ”—George Heath. 

Scripture. Rom. 12:1-21. 

Meditation: PRESUMPTUOUS SINS. 

Text: “Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous 
sins.” Psalm 19:13. 

All sins are great sins, but some sins are greater than 
others. David, in this psalm, makes it plain that presump¬ 
tuous sins are among the chief of sins, ranking among the 
foremost in the list of iniquities. 

I. Among presumptuous sins we would class, first, 
those against special light and warning. A sin of ignor¬ 
ance is not presumptuous, unless the ignorance itself be 
willful. When a man sins from want of knowledge of the 
law, or of reproof, advice or admonition, we do not call 
that a presumptuous sin. But when one knows what is 
right, is instructed by an enlightened conscience and God’s 
word, and has also, possibly, the admonition of friends 
and their wise advice, and still goes on in a wrong way, 
his sin certainly partakes strongly of the nature of a pre¬ 
sumptuous sin. 

II. Among the presumptuous sins we would class, 
secondly, those of special deliberation and design. A man 
may have a very passionate spirit, and in a moment of 
hot haste utter an angry word for which he soon repents. 

218 


PRESUMPTUOUS SINS 


219 


Such a man certainly does not sin presumptuously when 
suddenly overcome by anger; though, without doubt, there 
is presumption in his sin unless he strives to correct that 
passion and keep it down. But the man who carefully 
plans how an evil is to be done, and Haman-like sets about 
to build the gallows, the man who digs a pit for his friend 
to fall into, the man who lays snares in secret and plots 
wickedness upon his bed, is tremendously guilty. His sins 
are in the highest degree presumptuous. Such is also the 
case with men who long continue in any given course of 
sin. who transgress today and tomorrow and the next day, 
week after week, year after year, piling up a great moun¬ 
tain of accumulated guilt. Such men sin presumptuously. 
The reason is because in such a continued repetition or 
habit of sin there must be definite deliberation. It is the 
same in the case of sins of design. In the Old Testament 
there is an account of a man who went out and gathered 
sticks on the Sabbath day. He was put to death for it. 
That seemed very severe. But the reason for such pun¬ 
ishment was that his sin was a very presumptuous one. 
The law of the Sabbath had just been proclaimed, “In it 
thou shalt do no manner of work.” But this man wil¬ 
fully, out of design, in order, as it were, to show that he 
despised God, without any necessity, went out and per¬ 
formed an act that brought shame upon the whole people. 
His was a persumptuous sin. And men sometimes sin to¬ 
day out of design, with the deliberate intention to sin. 

III. But a more common class of presumptuous sins 
are sins of hardihood and against wise sentiments of cau¬ 
tion. It has been said, “He who has gunpowder about 
him has need to keep away from sparks.” But there are 
men who play with temptations, who try to rush, with 
their power-like nature, through the flames. 


220 


PRESUMPTUOUS SINS 


Sir Walter Scott, in his wanderings through the High¬ 
lands of Scotland, fell in with this legend, which has close 
application to this thought about presumptuous sins. The 
legend says that a wayfaring man once found himself at 
the mouth of a great cavern. Impelled by curiosity, he en¬ 
tered and found himself in a large hall where on either side 
were armed warriors mounted upon their horses, but all 
buried in slumber. Upon an altar in the middle of the 
room, lay a sheathed sword and trumpet. The intruder put 
the trumpet to his lips and blew a resonant blast. In¬ 
stantly was heard the clashing of armor as the horses 
and their riders awoke, and the visitor found himself ex¬ 
pelled from the cavern by an invisible but irresistible 
force, and a voice was heard saying, “Fool that did not 
draw the sword before he blew the trumpet.” There are 
far too many people who make the mistake of blowing the 
trumpet before they draw the sword. It is guilty pre¬ 
sumption when we waken up the enemies of our soul be¬ 
fore we are surely prepared to meet them. Too often 
people put themslves in the way of danger. 

We read of a strange lawsuit which was recently de¬ 
cided in England. A man visiting a show found a stable 
door open and went in and stroked the zebra, whereupon 
the ungrateful beast let out with his heels and kicked the 
man through the partition into another stall, where an¬ 
other zebra bit his hand so cruelly that it had to be ampu¬ 
tated. The question was whether he could recover damages 
from the zebra’s owner. A jury thought he could, but the 
Court of Appeals decided not. The learned judges declared 
that a zebra is legally a wild animal. Now an owner’s 
duty with regard to a wild beast is to keep it secured, so 
that it may not go about seeking whom it may devour, and 
this zebra was secured. True, the door was accidentally 


PRESUMPTUOUS SINS 


221 


left open, and if the visitor had merely gone in and been 
kicked, he might have recovered damages; but he invited 
his kicking by stroking the zebra. 

How many people there are who fall into sin in the 
same way. They pray in the morning, “Lead me not into 
temptation,” and then they go carelessly wandering about 
into the devil’s stables, ready to stroke any curious zebra 
of sin they may find. Oh how many of us there are who 
need to learn the prayer and to offer it sincerely, “Keep 
back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them 
not have dominion over me.” 

The advice the sainted Bishop Hamline once gave to 
a boy is good advice for us all. “When in trouble, my 
boy,” said he, “kneel down and ask God’s help; but never 
climb over the fence into the devil’s ground, and then kneel 
down and ask help. Pray from God’s side of the fence.” 
Or, as another Christian has said, “If you don’t mean to 
trade with Satan, you must keep out of his shop.” 

Prayer: “O Lord, succor, we beseech thee, us who are 
tempted. May nothing induce us to distrust thy care over 
us, nor to use the gifts to the denial of thee, their Giver. 
May we never presume upon thy protection when we are 
forsaking thy paths, and tempting thee. May we never, 
for the sake of any supposed gain or advancement, quench 
the testimony of thy Spirit, or prove disloyal to thy ser¬ 
vice. Do thou so support us in all temptations that, when 
we have been tried, we may receive the crown of life, 
which thou hast for them that love thee. We ask all 
through Christ, our Lord. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


THE BEST GIFTS 


Motto for the Week: “Whatsoever things are true, 
whatsoever things are honest, etc., think on these things” 
Phil. 4:8. 

Hymn: “Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve ”— 

Philip Doddridge. 

Scripture: Phil. 4:1-23. 

Meditation: THE BEST GIFTS. 

Text: “Covet earnestly the best gifts.” I Cor. 12:31. 

This expression means “be zealous for,” or greatly de¬ 
sire, the best, the most useful endowments. Paul had been 
telling the Corinthian Christians that no one should be proud 
or elated on account of extraordinary endowments; also, on 
the other hand, that no one should be depressed, or sad, or 
discontented because he occupied a humble position. He 
was endeavoring to repress in them the spirit of discontent 
and jealousy and ambition and to produce a willingness to 
occupy the station in which God had placed them. But 
fearing that they might mistake his meaning, and be too 
easily satisfied, he says in effect, I do not intend to deny 
that it is proper to desire the most useful endowments and 
graces of the Spirit. It is right for you to desire to be 
qualified for eminent usefulness. But I will show you a 
more excellent way of manifesting your zeal than by aspir¬ 
ing to the place of apostles, or prophets, or rulers over your 
brethren—it is by cultivating universal charity, or love. 
Then follows the wonderful thirteenth chapter of First Cor- 

222 


THE BEST GIFTS 


223 


inthians, which so definitely presents love as the greatest 
thing in the world. 

“Covet earnestly the best gifts/’ What are some of the 
gifts and graces it is right for us thus eagerly to desire? 

I. One, as we have indicated, is the gift of love. To 
have a warm heart, wide sympathies, unselfish feelings, a 
desire for the good of others, and the kindly and winsome 
ways that grow out of these, are graces it were well if we 
all more eagerly sought. It is through the obtaining of this 
gift of love the world is to be made better and earth become 
increasingly like heaven. If completely possessed we would 
all live out the Golden Rule every day of our lives, and 
that would bring heaven upon earth. 

II. Another is the gift of faith. By this we mean the 
grace of a calm trust in God. We know of nothing that 
could more greatly increase the sum of human happiness 
than for men to come to trust God. Could we but realize 
that God is love, and all his plans for us love-prompted; 
that he is wisdom, and his ways of leading us and con¬ 
trolling our lives the very best that could be; that he is 
strength, and therefore able to make all things work to¬ 
gether for our good, how much happier life might be to us 
all. God is a God of infinite love, infinite wisdom, infinite 
power—how well we can afford to trust him! Covet ear¬ 
nestly this gift of faith. 

III. Another is the gift of knowledge. It is right that 
we should want to know the best there is in history, the 
best there is in literature, and the best there is in human 
learning and knowledge. Is it not still more desirable that 
we should know as much as possible of God and of the 
things of the Spirit? Covet earnestly the best gifts, and 
among them this gift of spiritual intelligence, knowledge of 
the Bible, and of spiritual experience, and of the ways of 
God through his acts of providence and mercy. 


224 


THE BEST GIFTS 


IV. Another is the gift of beauty. It is right that we 
should desire to be beautiful, especially with the attractive¬ 
ness that comes from beauty of soul. This, of course, is 
the secret of beauty, for soul beauty cannot be hid; it shines 
out in the face and features, and in the whole poise and at¬ 
titude of the one who possesses it. 

V. To this end we should earnestly desire the gift of 
fellowship with God. To be much with God is the way to 
become like God. There is a wonderful soul-transforming 
power in communion with Christ. This is one of the rea¬ 
sons why we should seek to be with him more, come into 
closer relationship with him, know his mind, drink in his 
spirit, study his character, ponder his words. 

VI. Therefore still another gift earnestly to be desired 
is the gift of truth. It is right that we should desire to 
know truth just as deeply and widely as possible. This 
means that we should learn to think. How many people 
there are in the world who do almost no thinking; there 
is nothing about their faces or features to indicate that 
they have ever studied deeply, no lines of thought or marked 
intelligence. We should seek to know as much of all truth 
as we can; but especially of the highest manifestations of 
truth in its spiritual aspects. All truth is the truth of God. 
He is truth—the source of truth. Let us regard all truth 
as sacred, but let us seek especially to know Him and about 
Him who is “the way and the truth and the life. ,, 

VII. One other gift we mention worthy of being so 
eagerly desired—the gift of righteousness. It is an endow¬ 
ment that may be cultivated and increased. Let us earnestly 
seek to be right and do right—to have characters patterned 
after Christ’s character, and to live a life of holiness and 
gracious benefit to others like his life was. 


THE BEST GIFTS 


225 


Prayer: “O Almighty God, help us to put away all bit¬ 
terness and wrath and evil-speaking, with all malice. May 
we possess our souls in patience, however we are tempted 
and provoked, and not be overcome with evil, but overcome 
evil with good. Enable us, O God of patience, to bear one 
another’s burdens, and to forbear one another in love. Oh, 
teach and help us all to live in peace and to love in truth, 
following peace with all men and walking in love, as Christ 
loved us, of whom let us learn such meekness and lowliness 
of heart that in Him we may find rest for our souls. Sub¬ 
due all bitter resentments in our minds, and let the law of 
kindness be in our tongues, and a meek and quiet spirit in 
all our lives. Make us so gentle and peaceable that we may 
be followers of thee as dear children, that thou, the God of 
peace, mayest dwell with us forevermore. We ask through 
Christ. Amen.” 

Offer together the Lord’s Prayer. 


REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING 


Motto for the Week: “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and 
forget not all his benefits.” Ps. 103:2. 

Hymn: “Praise to God, immortal praise .”—Anna L. 
Barbauld. 

Scripture: Psalm 147:1-20. 

Meditation: REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 

Text: “O give thanks unto the Lord , for he is good; 
for his mercy endureth forever. Let the redeemed of the 
Lord say so.” Ps. 107:1, 2. 

The theme of this Psalm is gratitude for enduring mer¬ 
cies. Gratitude is a grace that struggles for expression. It 
does not shut itself up in the heart. It does not allow itself 
to be merely felt. It wants to speak. It wants to say some¬ 
thing. The writer of the psalm shows us that he thinks well 
of this tendency to give expression to grateful feeling; yes, 
that he regards it as a duty. He says, Let those who are 
among the redeemed of the Lord, those who have expe¬ 
rienced God’s mercies, those who have tasted of his good¬ 
ness,—let them, “say so.” Let them give voice to, recount 
the number of their favors and their grateful feelings in re¬ 
gard to them. “O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is 
good; for his mercy endureth forever. Let the redeemed 
of the Lord say so.” 

Giving thanks to God for his mercies is always a comely 
thing for us to do; but especially at this period of our 

226 


REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING 


227 


national Thanksgiving season ought we to stir ourselves all 
the more to this delightful duty. 

I. A first reason is the one we have mentioned, that 
rhe very fact of having received gifts from God’s good hand 
makes it our duty to express thanks. “Saying so” is a far 
more present and pressing duty than many people think. 
This is true in our human relations of every day life. In 
hard fought campaigns it is customary for commanders to 
make mention of men who have distinguished themselves 
for bravery and service. It is not to minister to pride or 
to flatter them. It is to fulfill an obligation. The officer 
could not content himself with merely thinking well of the 
prowess of those who have done nobly. The country thinks 
it right that the soldier who has stood in the bloody front 
of battle and has vindicated his valor and patriotism should 
receive grateful recognition. For both reward and inspira¬ 
tion both the commander and the country believe that it is 
as little as can be done where a man deserves praise to “say 
so.” 

A young artist showed a picture to which he had de¬ 
voted his very best efforts to a great master. He stood 
breathless waiting for the master to speak. When the time 
seemed longer than he could possibly wait he turned to the 
great artist and cried, “O speak; say something; say any¬ 
thing!” Deep in the heart of the young artist was the 
natural but almost inexpressible desire to have the master, 
if he liked his picture, “say so.” 

That was a strikingly human and pathetic appeal a 
young boy made to his father, when he cried, “I often do 
wrong, I know, and then you scold me, and I deserve it; 
but, father, sometimes I do my best to do right! Won’t 
you let me know that I do please you?” Sometimes our 
children need reproof and repression, but much more often 


228 


REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING 


they need and will respond better to kind words of en¬ 
couragement and appreciation. Let the discriminating par¬ 
ent, pleased with the child’s progress in any right direc¬ 
tion “say so.” 

A mother was dying. Every thought had been for her 
children. By wonderful industry and good management 
she sent her boys to college, her girls to school and gave 
them marked advantages. But by and by she was stricken 
with mortal illness, brought on by over-work. The chil¬ 
dren gathered around her bedside. The oldest son took 
her in his arms. He said, “You have been a good mother 
to us.” That did not seem much to say, did it? But it 
was much to her, to whom words of praise had been all too 
sparingly given. A flush came over her pallid face, and 
with husky voice she whispered, “My son, you never said 
so before!” 

Oh how many mothers, and wives, and teachers, and 
clerks, and pastors, and church workers, and porters, and 
conductors, and trustees, and city officials, and soldiers, and 
sailors, and servants, and children, and people generally 
there are who are longing to hear some one “say so”—ex¬ 
press some word of satisfaction, appreciation and grateful 
praise! 

If parents, on a Christmas morning, like to hear the 
children in another room talking about their presents and 
of how good and kind father and mother and friends have 
been to them, need we wonder if our heavenly Father is 
pleased when he hears us express appreciation of and grat¬ 
itude for his benefits? The very fact that our blessings 
come from God’s good hand makes it our duty to give 
thanks. “O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good; for 
his mercy endureth forever. Let the redeemed of the 
Lord say so.” Why return thanks unto God for mercies if 
they have not come from him? If Thanksgiving Day means 


REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING 


229 


anything it means that we say to God, Our blessings are 
from Thee and unto Thee do we now return thanks. 

II. But not only should we give thanks to God because 
he is the giver of our blessings, but we have much additional 
reason so to do when we consider the great abundance of 
them. We are all too much prone to forget God’s benefits. 
We have excellent memories for all our trials and sorrows 
and losses, but fail to recall our blessings. It seems that 
the very abundance of God’s favors and their ever unbroken 
flow tend to make us all the more forgetful of the Giver 
of them all. But it is our duty to remember, to be thank¬ 
ful. So doing we will soon find ourselves ready to adopt 
the words of the Psalmist and say: “How many are thy 
gracious thoughts to me O Lord! How great is the sum 
of them! When I count them they are more in number 
than the sand.” 

We have read of a father who one winter’s night was. 
walking along, hurrying home, with his little daughter at 
his side. Suddenly she said to him, “Father, I am going 
to count the stars.” “Very well,” said he, “go on.” By 
and by he heard her counting—“Two hundred and twenty- 
three, two hundred and twenty-four, two hundred and 
twenty-five. O, dear,” she said, “I had no idea there were 
so many.” 

Ah, fellow Christian, have you never said in your soul, 
“Now, Master, I am going to count thy benefits,” and soon 
found your heart sighing, not with sorrow, but burdened 
with goodness, and you saying to yourself, “I had no idea 
that there were so many”? 

“Count the mercies! Count the mercies! 

Number all the gifts of love; 

Keep the daily, faithful record 
Of the comforts from above. 


230 


REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING 


Look at all the lovely green spots 
In life’s weary desert way; 

Think how many cooling fountains 
Cheer our fainting hearts each day. 

Count the mercies! Count the mercies! 

See them strewn along our way!” 

Prayer: “For days of health, for nights of quiet sleep; 
for seasons of bounty and of beauty, for all earth’s contri¬ 
butions to our need through this past year; Good Lord, 
we thank thee. For our country’s shelter; for our homes; 
for the joy of faces, and the joy of hearts that love; for 
the power of great examples; for holy ones who lead us 
in the ways of life and love; for our powers of growth; 
for longings to be better and do more; for ideals that ever 
rise above our real; for opportunities well used; for op¬ 
portunities unused; and even those misused; Good Lord, 
we humbly thank thee. For our temptations, and for any 
victory over sins that close beset us; for the gladness that 
abides with loyalty and the peace of the return; for the 
blessedness of service and the power to fit ourselves to 
others’ needs; for our necessities to work; for burdens, 
pain, and disappointments, means of growth; for sorrow; 
for death; for all that brings us nearer to each other, 
nearer to ourselves, near to thee; for Life; we thank Thee, 
O our Father. Amen.” 

Repeat the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


JOYFUL THANKSGIVING 


Motto for the Week: “Bless the Lord, 0 my soul, and 
forget not all his benefits” Psalm 103:2. 

Hymn: “Come, ye thankful people, come” —Henry Al¬ 
ford. 

Scripture: Psalm 146:1-10. 

Meditation: JOYFUL THANKSGIVING . 

Text: “But thus saith the Lord that created thee,” etc. 
Isa. 42:1-13. 

These verses are filled with wonderful promises and 
many reasons for thanksgiving on the part of the ancient 
Jews. Our reasons for thanksgiving, personal and national, 
are as many. Without following more closely the verses 
let us think of some of our reasons for joyful thanks¬ 
giving. 

I. Thank God for life. Carlyle has somewhere said: 
“Every man should put himself at zero, and then reckon 
every degree ascending from that point as an occasion for 
thanks.” That is the true standard. Precisely on this scale 
does the Bible compute our mercies. Every step we take 
from where conscious unworthiness would consign us should 
call for our offering of gratitude. “It is of the Lord’s mer¬ 
cies that we are not consumed.” Why should a living man 
complain?” So begins the anthem of thanks. It starts at 
the lowest note of all: “We are alive. We are not con¬ 
sumed.” Whatever we may think of our hardships and 
deprivations, we are all far above the extreme point, and 

231 


232 


JOYFUL THANKSGIVING 


therefore have much occasion for thanksgiving. A writei 
in the Quiver well expresses this thought. He says: “I 
felt most ill-used because a slight accident had disabled 
my right hand. Taking a walk through crowded streets, 
I met one man with a leg deficient, another without the 
usual number of arms, a blind woman, a girl with her 
face terribly disfigured, two deaf and dumb men, an old 
man with a ‘churchyard cough’, two funerals, and a van of 
prisoners. Having passed these, and come to a lunatic 
asylum, I made up my mind that I should be very thank¬ 
ful that I was not as badly off as thousands of more de¬ 
serving people.” 

II. Not only are we alive, but what a woundrous life 
it is we are permitted to live! It is not the life of an an¬ 
imal. A man alive! Can you find in all the works of 
God a being which surpasses him? He stands upon the 
earth, but his eyes need not be earthward bent. His is 
the upward look, the onward march, the glorious future. 
It is a grand, a glorious, a divine gift, this pulsing, throb¬ 
bing, mastering, glowing life we live. To live, to be con¬ 
scious, to think, to solve problems, to read the pages of 
nature and to reverently turn over the pages that reveal 
God, to believe that this is not all of life, but that above 
things animate and inanimate it is to endure forever, the 
immortal spark never to be quenched, the immortal world 
never to disappear, for all this, included in the one fact 
of life, shall we not evermore give thanks? 

III. Our gratitude is due also because of the age in 
which we live. The mists of superstition have almost dis¬ 
appeared. The darkness of ignorance no longer envelopes 
us. We have got out of the Egyptian night into the dear, 
crisp morning of liberty. 

And this liberty includes liberty to worship, and liberty 
of the Church to foster and educate and cultivate in men 


JOYFUL THANKSGIVING 


233 


the spirit of worship. When compared with her condition 
in many years of the past the Church of Christ has much 
to be thankful for. Now and then we hear rumors of the 
decadence of the Church. We are told that she is losing 
her influence and vitality. But this rumor, far more the 
expression of a wish than the statement of a fact, is not 
true. The fact is that the Church never did better work 
than it is doing today. The pulpit never more honestly de¬ 
clared the truth than it is declaring it today; and the Church 
is getting at the mind and the heart of the world as never be¬ 
fore. 

Fifty years ago a Mr. F. Hall was editor of the New 
York Commercial Advertiser. A Christian gentleman paid 
advertising rates for space in that paper to fill with re¬ 
ligious reading matter. When at the end of the year the 
man came to renew his contract the editor told him that 
the religious matter had proved so interesting to his read¬ 
ers that he would furnish the space free. Fifty years ago 
one must pay advertising rates to get religious matter into 
a secular newspaper. Today the great dailies print column 
after column of sermons, and International Sunday-school 
lessons, and reports about missions and missionaries and 
of the church life and work. No, the world is not losing 
interest in the Christian religion, and for this fact let the 
Church be thankful. 

Let us cultivate more the spirit of thankfulness. Arch¬ 
bishop Trench speaks of a tribe in Brazil in whose language 
there is neither the word nor the idea of “thanks.” God 
forbid that a like fact should ever come to pass in our 
language. As Spurgeon in his quaint way puts it: “Even 
the little chick never takes a drink of water without look¬ 
ing up and giving thanks!” Let us not fail to look up 
and recognize God as the giver of every good. 


234 


JOYFUL THANKSGIVING 


Get the habit of thanksgiving. There is a beautiful 
legend of a golden organ in an ancient monastery. Once 
the monastery was besieged by robbers who desired to 
carry off its treasures. The monks took the organ to 
the river which flowed close by and sank it in the deep 
water in order to keep it from the hands of the robbers. 
And the legend is that though buried thus in the river, the 
organ still continued to give forth sweet enchanting music, 
which was heard by those who came near. 

Every Christian life should be like this golden organ. 
Nothing should ever silence its music. Even when the 
floods of sorrow or disappointment flow over it, it should 
still continue to rejoice and sing. We should have the habit 
of thanksgiving. We should cultivate the habit. Some 
people are never grateful to God. Some are grateful when 
things go well. But God is always good and his dealings 
with us are good. To be grateful one day in the year can¬ 
not make up for three hundred and sixty-four days of in¬ 
gratitude. Every day should be a Thanksgiving Day. 

It is said that in Africa there is a fruit called the 
“taste berry,” because it changes a person’s taste so that 
everything eaten tastes sweet and pleasant. Sour fruit, 
even if eaten several hours after the “taste berry,” becomes 
sweet and delicious. Gratitude is the “taste berry” of 
Christianity, and when our hearts are filled with gratitude, 
nothing that God sends us seems unpleasant to us. Sor¬ 
rowing heart, sweeten your grief with gratitude. Bur¬ 
dened soul, lighten your burden by singing God’s praises. 
Disappointed one, make your disappointment his appoint¬ 
ment by a thankful spirit. Lonely one, dispel your lone¬ 
liness by making others grateful. Sick one, grow strong 
in soul thanking God that he loves you enough to chasten 
you. Keep the “taste berry” of gratitude in your hearts, 


JOYFUL THANKSGIVING 


235 


and it will do for you what the “taste berry” of Africa 
does for the African. 

O that the grumbler, the pessimist, the chronic com- 
plainer might acquire the “thank you habit.” The “thank 
you” spirit should girdle the globe and ascend towards 
heaven. Earth would be brighter and heaven would bend 
with its burden of blessings to enrich grateful hearts. 

Prayer: “Heavenly Father, give us grace to note thy 
little gifts. There are so many of them; and the stream is 
so constant. What pleasures thou hast stored up for us, 
and dost pass over to us, in the flowers, the sunshine, the 
morning breeze, the pleasures of the table, of books, of 
pictures, of sleep and waking, of friendly greetings, of 
happy relations with our fellows! Not a moment passes 
without its ministries from thee, gently dropping into our 
else dreary lives. Give us grace to count our blessings, and 
not our vexations. Let the satisfaction and joy of a thank¬ 
ful spirit possess us. Keep us from discrediting thy kind 
providence by sour looks and whining speech. So fill us 
with thine own great contentment, Lord Jesus, that we can¬ 
not but generate sunshine wherever we walk, and thus 
bring cheer to the disheartened. Even our smallest joys 
and pleasures, Lord, we would have and use for the benefit 
of others, not of self. Let there be nothing narrow or petty 
in our lives, our thoughts, our feelings; nothing mean; noth¬ 
ing so untrue to facts as a sad heart and gloomy mien; 
nothing so unworthy as a spirit perpetually discontented 
and uneasy. Thou hast invited us to rest and peace and 
joy; we would take thee at thy word, and by thy grace 
would so live that our very looks, our tone of voice, our 
constant behavior, shall speak thy praise and prove a lure 
to all we meet to draw them to thee. Amen.” 

Offer the Lord's Prayer together. 


LOST SECRETS AND AN OPEN 
SECRET 


Motto for the Week: “Godliness with contentment is 
great gain .” I Tim. 6:6. 

Hymn: “In heavenly love abiding.” —Anna L. Waring. 

Scripture: Matt. 6:24-34. 

Meditation: LOST SECRETS AND AN OPEN SE¬ 
CRET. 

Text: “For I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, 
therewith to be content.” Phil. 4:11. 

Forty years ago an Italian priest, named Luigi Taranti, 
discovered a method of making stained glass, the coloring 
of which was declared to be equal to that made by the an¬ 
cients, whose secret has been lost. Taranti abandoned holy 
orders and set to work to execute the hundreds of commis¬ 
sions he received, in the secrecy of his workshop at Ostia, 
near Rome. The finest stained glass windows in Italy were 
made by him, and he guarded his secret well, for when a 
year later, he was found dead of blood-poisoning set up by 
the pigments he employed, it was realized that he had car¬ 
ried the secret with him. The cleverest workmen were 
called in to examine the pigments, but they one and all 
failed to penetrate the dead man’s secret. 

The only man who has yet been successful in taking pho¬ 
tographs in color was a martyr to his discovery, the secret 
of which is lost. Some years ago Dr. Herbert Franklin, 

236 


LOST SECRETS AND AN OPEN SECRET 237 

of Chicago, submitted a number of colored photographs— 
of a somewhat crude nature it is true—to the leading Amer¬ 
ican scientific institutions, and the encouragement he re¬ 
ceived was such that he built himself a laboratory, proof 
against the wiles of spies, at the cost of $12,000, wherein 
to perfect his invention. In the preparation of his plates 
he used a charcoal fire, and one day when at work he omit¬ 
ted to open the ventilators, and was found asphyxiated. 
He had refrained from divulging his secret to anyone, and 
in consequence, although some partially finished plates that 
hid the secret remained, the way they were prepared is a 
problem that has baffled scientists to this day. 

A man who discovered how to make fulminite, an ex¬ 
plosive that would have revolutionized warfare, and to 
whom the German government offered the equivalent of 
one hundred thousand dollars for his invention, unexpect¬ 
edly came to his death in an explosion in his laboratory and 
the secret is a lost one. 

There are, indeed, many lost secrets; but it was not a 
lost secret but an open secret the Apostle Paul was writing 
about when he said, “I have learned, in whatsoever state I 
am, therewith to be content.” “Godliness with content¬ 
ment is great gain.” Piety connected with a contented mind, 
a mind free from fret and worry and complaint at the al¬ 
lotment of Providence, a mind trustful and calm and satis¬ 
fied with God’s will, this is the highest possible riches, the 
greatest gain. But we must remember that this is not some¬ 
thing that comes to us in a natural way. It is indeed a se¬ 
cret to be learned. When Paul says that he had “learned” 
it, he means that he had “gotten into the secret of it.” The 
exact meaning is that he had been initiated into it, by some 
sort of an experience, somewhat like a person joining a 
secret society. He used the exact Greek word denoting 
the celebrated and secret rites of initiation into the Elusin- 


238 LOST SECRETS AND AN OPEN SECRET 

ian mysteries, required of Athenian citizens. Into the mys¬ 
tery of Christian contentment every citizen of Christ’s 
kingdom should desire to be initiated. It was death to 
reveal one of those Elusinian secrets; but this is an “open 
secret” into which every one may enter. Commercial se¬ 
crets are sometimes kept, like the process of making kodak 
films, or for manufacturing Russia iron, but this secret is 
free to all—how to be rich without money—how to attain 
the wealth of Christian contentment. 

I. First, get over the thought that simply to be rich 
is to be happy. There is, to be sure, no virtue in being 
poor, and it is a very convenient thing to have wealth; but 
there is no standard by which a man can conclude when he 
is really rich, and wealth in itself has no inherent power to 
make a single mortal of us happy. 

II. Neither does happiness consist in fame and worldly 
honors as so many seem to think. “Uneasy lies the head 
ihat wears a crown.” Goethe had wealth and genius, yet he 
says he never experienced five weeks of genuine pleasure. 
Burke said: “I would not give a peck of refuse wheat for 
all that men call fame.” 

III. Neither is happiness found in the pursuit of pleas¬ 
ure. Indeed, happiness sought is seldom found. Happiness 
sought for happiness’ sake is never obtained. Happiness 
is found indirectly. If you seek happiness you will find 
it not. Do your duty in life and happiness will come of it¬ 
self. 

IV. What, then, is the secret of Christian contentment 
—of real happiness? 

Make the least of your little lacks. A man of really 
good circumstances once said: “I look at what I have not 
and count myself unhappy. Others look at what I have and 
count me happy.” Look at what you have, and make the 


LOST SECRETS AND AN OPEN SECRET 239 

least of your little lacks. Make the most of your little en¬ 
joyments. In this way you will get “the peace that springs 
from the large aggregate of little things.” “Be content with 
such things as you have,” says the apostle. That is, “En¬ 
ter upon the enjoyment of your present blessings.” Make 
the most of the enjoyments you have and do not worry 
about those you have not. 

Do your best with your little duties. They contain the 
principle of true service; they are the makeup of the most 
of our lives, and by them we shall be judged at the last. 

Make the least of your little lacks; make the most of 
your present enjoyments; do the best with your little du¬ 
ties, and then, lastly, “Trust in God and do the right.” 
These are the open secrets to a happy life. It is a happy 
fact that while we cannot all be money rich we can all be 
millionaires of mind and of heart, of character and of faith, 
possessing that godliness which with contentment is great 
gain. May we be so supremely happy as to learn Paul's 
secret and come into this rich possession. 

Prayer: “Almighty God, forbid that we should become 
so familiar with thy goodness as to be indifferent to it; 
may thy mercy be a daily surprise; may the tenderness of 
the living and loving God amaze us by an unexpected rev¬ 
elation. Thus may we live in sweet excitement, in well- 
controlled rapture, in that elevation of soul which is the 
best preparation for the service of others Enrich us with 
all wisdom; give us enlargement and penetration of under¬ 
standing ; help thy Church so to read the signs of the times 
as to know what Israel ought to do, and when thy Church 
knows its duty, may it throw away all fear and selfish cal¬ 
culation, and with the courage of righteousness, go forth 
under the banners of God. All we ask is in the name of 
Christ, our Lord. Amen.” 

Offer the Lord's Prayer in unison. 


SPIRITUAL POVERTY. 


Motto for the Week: “Wherefore do ye spend money 
for that which is not bread?” Isa. 55:2. 

Hymn: “Jesus, I my cross have taken” —Henry F. 
Lyte. 

Scripture: Revelation 3:1-22. 

Meditation: SPIRITUAL POVERTY. 

Text: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock,” etc. 
Rev. 3:20. 

Two travelers met in the East and talked for a few mo¬ 
ments on religious themes. The next summer they met, 
quite unexpectedly, at the Keswick Conference. The first, 
who was a clergyman, said to the other, somewhat impul¬ 
sively: “What brought you to Keswick?” His answer 
was: “Poverty, spiritual poverty!” 

I. The fact of the common prevalence of spiritual pov¬ 
erty. 

It is not true that every one realizes his spiritual poverty. 
Like the Laodiceans, we may think that we are rich and in¬ 
creased in goods and have need of nothing, when in fact 
we are miserable and poor and blind and naked. Spiritual 
poverty may be a fact, whether discovered or not. And 
looking within, what we know as self-examination, does not 
always reveal it. Spiritual stocktaking does not always dis¬ 
cover it. We find it out not through the false and flattering 
witness of our hearts, but by listening to the faithful and 
infallible witness of Christ. Therefore in seeking to know 

240 


SPIRITUAL POVERTY 


241 


our own selves we must not limit our look to an inward 
glance. We must seek to know Christ’s estimate of us. 
He is the “Amen,” the faithful, trustworthy witness. He 
says: “I know thy works. I, and I only, know.” There¬ 
fore we must look to him and say, “Search me, O God, 
and when thou hast searched me, tell me what thou hast 
found.” We make wrong estimates ever of ourselves. We 
do not really know our selves. He knows our works and 
our condition. We must, therefore, apply to him. 

The secret of life is to know what is behind phenomena, 
both in the natural world and in the spiritual world. Back 
of our wrong estimates of our spiritual condition often is 
lukewarmness. Tepid water is insipid, it is nauseating. In¬ 
sipid Christians are not acceptable to Christ. Those who 
are vacillating, who constantly compromise between the 
self-life and the Christ-life, make themselves loathsome to 
our Lord, and he comes to a point where he cannot bear 
them, is about to cast them from him. To be neither for 
Christ nor against Christ, to be neither hot nor cold, is to 
ruin one’s spiritual life, to grow in spiritual poverty and 
offensiveness. 

The self-deceived and lukewarm life is quite likely to 
result also in spiritual pride. “Thou sayest I am rich.” 
You think you have need of nothing. “Thou knowest not” 
—what? That thou art a wretched Christian—that thou 
art a pitiable Christian—that thou art a “beggarly” Chris¬ 
tian. That is the literal meaning of the word “poor.” That 
thou art a blind Christian, a naked Christian! Oh, how the 
Holy Spirit takes away all the tinsel of our deceptive wealth, 
and shows us as we really are! 

II. The remedy for our spiritual poverty? Buy gold. 
Repent of having made other investments, and for the sin 
and folly of it, and heed God’s counsel to buy gold that 
has been tried in the fire. The tinsel we have been deal- 


242 


SPIRITUAL POVERTY 


ing with will not stand the test. Pure gold will. Then, 
too, be clothed; put on the white garment of Christ’s right¬ 
eousness, that the shame of thy nakedness be not man¬ 
ifested. 

Use eye salve. “Anoint thine eyes with eye salve that 
thou mayest see.” Take a different view of things. See 
right. See straight. Form right estimates of things. 

Invite Christ as a guest. He stands at the door and 
knocks. Let him in. Invite him to the throne of your 
heart to cleanse it, to rule it, to take the government of it 
upon his own shoulders. 

Listen to Christ’s voice. “He that hath an ear let him 
hear.” To be able clearly to distinguish the tones of his 
voice is very important. After you become familiar with a 
friend’s tones, you will hear them in the midst of a crowded 
street—anywhere; but first of all we must learn to recog¬ 
nize them. The reason so many people declare that God is 
silent is simply because they have never learned to recog¬ 
nize his voice when he speaks. They are never conscious 
of being alone with him. Perhaps they pray. They may 
talk with God, may tell him many things. But they forget 
that there is such a thing as allowing God to speak and tell 
us things. “The secret of the Lord is with them that fear 
him.” He whispers into the ears of those who listen. “Be 
still and know that I am God.” We do not keep still 
enough. There would be no difficulty about recognizing 
God’s voice if we were more quiet, more willing to listen. 
This is a very noisy world. One is liable to become be¬ 
wildered in the din and confusion of modern life, with its 
multiplicity of interests. Many Christians have lost that 
beautiful experience of which the Psalmist spoke, of “de¬ 
lighting themselves in God.” We do not open the door and 
invite God in as we should. Unless we are hospitable, we 
can not have the privilege of entertaining a heavenly guest. 


SPIRITUAL POVERTY 


243 


There are many reasons why the door is not opened. 
Some of us are afraid to open it. Notwithstanding the gra¬ 
cious tones of him who seeks admission, the prospect of 
having him inside is not a reassuring one. We are afraid 
that he will not approve of all that he will see. And most 
of us have good reasons to be ashamed of the appearance of 
the room. Though it may not be a fit place for One so 
high and holy, let us never keep the Master standing out¬ 
side because it does not seem suitable for him. 

Then, too, when God enters a human life he comes not 
as a formal guest. We are too apt to treat him as such, 
because of his dignity and because of our sense of unworthi¬ 
ness. But he comes to sup with us. That is, he comes seek¬ 
ing intimate fellowship. It is to this holy relationship 
Christ seeks to enter; not to be treated as company, as we 
ordinarily use that word, but to be given the freedom and 
to enjoy the intimacy which we extend to those whom we 
most love. 

There are some people who never hear God’s voice. 
The tone of his appeal is too low, too sweet, too tender, and 
they are living in such a rush of noise and din. Others 
there are who hear his voice, recognize his tones, but are 
either unwilling or else ashamed to have him enter their 
lives. Still another class open the door and bid him enter, 
and treat him as they would an occasional visitor, they are 
formal and distant and uncommunicative. It is only when 
without conscious effort, but simply and naturally, we feel 
that Christ is perfectly at home with us and we with him 
that we gain the real joy and benefit of his presence and 
all our spiritual poverty is overcome. Open the door. Let 
him in. The presence of such a guest will make you rich. 

Prayer: “O Lord, thy mercy is great, it extendeth over 
all thy works, it endureth forever, it becomes tender mercy 


244 


SPIRITUAL POVERTY 


by long uses and great endurance, and thy kindness becomes 
loving kindness, the very bloom and fragrance of love. May 
we enter into the sanctuary of thine heart, and find rest 
there, having entered by the living door, the living Christ. 
How precious are thy thoughts unto us! They are not of 
the earth earthly; they fill all heaven, they reveal infinity, 
they dwell upon the sublimities of the eternal state, and 
whilst we follow thy thoughts we are lifted up in noblest 
elevation and forgetting eaith and time and space we see 
heaven opened and the whole creation gathered in worship 
round the feet of Christ. Let us also gather there and re¬ 
ceive the rich blessing of thy Fatherhood. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


GOD MADE VISIBLE IN CHRIST 


Motto for the Week: “Glory to God in the highest” 
Luke 2:14. 

Hymn: “Hark! the herald angels sing” —Rev. C. Wes¬ 
ley. 

Scripture: Matt. 2:1-11. 

Christmas Meditation: GOD MADE VISIBLE IN 
CHRIST. 

Text: “No man hath seen God at any time; the only 
begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath 
declared him.” John 1:18. 

God is invisible. No human eyes have seen him. It is not 
meant to deny that men have seen manifestations of God, as 
when he appeared to Moses or to the prophets. But it is 
certain that no man has seen the essence of God, or has 
fully known him. God is made visible in Christ. We know 
him most perfectly through Christ. 

Suppose some Eastern king were to send us a picture 
painted by himself, we should know something of him,—of 
his knowledge, skill, and love of beauty. But if he were to 
send a long, delightfully written, kind letter, we should 
know him better. But if he should send upon a visit to us his 
son, very much like himself, we should know him best. In 
all three of these ways God has revealed himself to us. The 
world is a great picture painted by God. Or, to change 
the figure, suppose you visit a great factory and see order 
everywhere. It shows that the man who planned and built 
and arranged such a place had an orderly mind. So in the 

245 


246 


GOD MADE VISIBLE IN CHRIST 


universe God has made there is order, and wisdom, and 
power, and beauty, and goodness manifested as well, and 
all telling us of God and revealing him to us. Then, too, 
the Bible is a letter from God, a long and loving letter to 
us revealing his very heart, how he thinks of us and what 
he would have us to be and to do. This is a very much 
fuller revelation than Nature can make. But Jesus Christ 
is God’s Son, and if we want to know most perfectly what 
God is like we must study Jesus. It was to give us this 
inestimable opportunity that God sent him into the world 
nearly two thousand years ago, and it is this blessed fact 
which each recurring Advent season should recall to all 
hearts and minds. 

It is related of a wise Eastern ruler that when he died 
he left word to his people that his son would be their king, 
and though they had never seen his face, they would judge 
of his government by his acts. The people promised obe¬ 
dience. The influence of the new ruler was wise and kind, 
and like the beams of the sun, it streamed out of the royal 
palace, bringing joy to every subject. The people marveled 
and said: “We see him not; how does he understand us so 
well?” They came to the palace gates and said, “Let the 
king suffer us to see his face.” The king came forth to 
them in his royal robes, and when they saw him they re¬ 
joiced and said, “We know thy face.” He had walked so 
often with them as their friend, showing love and kindness 
to all, that when they saw him in the palace, his kingly robes 
did not disguise him. They knew him. 

This is our Christmas day thought; for this is what 
Christmas really means. In the incarnation our King comes 
1o the palace gate and lets us see his face. “The word be¬ 
came flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, 
the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace 
and truth.” God was in the world before, ruling in love 


GOD MADE VISIBLE IN CHRIST 


247 


and wisdom. We did not recognize or know him; but we 
felt his power and received of his grace. He was among 
us, as we might say, incognito. He was with us all the 
while ruling and defending us, conquering all his and our 
enemies—our loving, wise and ever-mindful King. But in 
the incarnation of Christ he revealed himself; he made him¬ 
self visible to us; he permitted us to realize who the one 
that had been our benefactor really was, and something of 
the depth of the love he felt. At this glad Christmas season 
may we see our King at his palace gate. 

I. Jesus manifests God, therefore, in his person. He 
is his “only begotten Son.” His home is “in the bosom of 
the Father.” Jesus had a knowledge of God, of his nature 
and character and designs, such as no other one ever pos¬ 
sessed, and which qualified him, therefore, above all others, 
to make God known. “The Word was made flesh and dwelt 
among us.” Christ was “God manifest in the flesh.” Christ, 
dwelling among men , they beheld in him “the glory of the 
only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” 

In the Rospigliosi Palace, in Rome, is Guido Reni’s great 
picture of Aurora. It is on the ceiling and can be studied 
only with great difficulty from the floor. But a mirror is 
so placed on a table that it reflects the picture, and one can 
study it there with ease and pleasure. God is a Spirit; and 
he is in heaven, “dwelling in light unapproachable.” But 
the incarnation, which we so gladly celebrate at the Christ¬ 
mas season, was the bringing of the reflection of the glor¬ 
ious person of God down to earth in a human form and 
life. Men looked at Jesus and saw in him the very reflec¬ 
tion of God, “the express image of his person.” 

Some one has well said: “In looking at the sun, through 
a telescope, if we use unstained glass the eye will be burned 
to the socket, and we shall see nothing; but if we employ 
a colored medium we can examine it with safety. So no 


248 GOD MADE VISIBLE IN CHRIST 

man can see God and live. But if we contemplate him 
through Christ; that is, if we come to him through the me¬ 
dium of humanity, we behold him without being destroyed ; 
nay, the sight of him imparts salvation to us; for we behold 
his glory as that of the Only Begotten, and lo! He is ‘full 
of grace and truth.’ ” 

II. Jesus manifests God also by his life and character. 
“He hath declared him.” The obvious meaning of these 
words is not so much that Jesus has told us or taught us 
verbally who and what God is—though he did do that—but 
that in his own person and life and character he is the si¬ 
lent, inarticulate manifestation of God to the world. As 
some one has said: “A child may declare or describe to you 
the appearance and character of his father; a pupil may 
tell you of his teacher; an author may give an account of 
himself in his book; but there may be in each of these cases 
an involuntary and indirect description, much more em¬ 
phatic than the direct one. For in his writings the author, 
especially if he be an earnest writer, unconsciously portrays 
himself, so that we may know as much of the heart and soul 
of a favorite author by familiarity with his books as if we 
had lived for years in personal intercourse with him. So 
the pupil has caught the revered master’s manner; or the 
child bears, not only in his person, but in his temper, hab¬ 
its, sentiments, prevailing tone of thought and feeling, a 
strong family-likeness to the parent; and though there may 
be much in the father which, from inferiority of talents or 
attainments, the child may be inadequate to represent, yet, 
according to his measure, he may convey to us a better idea 
of what the father is than by any express and formal de¬ 
scription of him we could attain.” Just so it is in this case, 
Jesus is the revelation of the invisible God. Both by his 
person and especially by his life and character he man¬ 
ifested God to men. 


GOD MADE VISIBLE IN CHRIST 


249 


III. Jesus manifests God also by his sufferings and 
death. In his coming to earth he revealed the person of 
God. In his life and character he revealed the purity and 
righteousness of God. But it was especially in his suffer¬ 
ings and death that he revealed the heart of God—his mercy 
and grace and his yearning love. We do not really know 
God until we see Christ on the cross and realize that it was 
from love, due to his own and his Father’s love for us, that 
he hung and suffered there. At this Advent season let us 
not fail to see, in the light of the cross, something of the 
great love wherewith God has loved us and all men. Noth¬ 
ing could make our Christmas a happier one, or cause more 
blessings to flow out from us to the world—to the unnum¬ 
bered multitudes of this great human-world for which 
Christ came and lived and died. As Christ came to reflect 
God, let us, in turn, try to be reflectors of Christ, that 
he may be glorified in us. 

Prayer: “Our Heavenly Father, we thank thee for 
the Christmas season with all its gifts and gladness. We 
thank thee for the love in so many hearts that finds ex¬ 
pression in gifts and good-will; for home gatherings and 
reunions of separated ones; for home joys and social fes¬ 
tivities; and for all the gladness that brightens the weary 
world in this Christmas time. May we know that all these 
blessings are showered upon us by the hand of the Babe 
of Bethlehem, and that it is his Spirit working in humanity 
that is transforming our modern world. May not the 
abundance of material gifts smother the spiritual signifi¬ 
cance of the day, and the gifts cause us to forget the real 
Giver. Move us with generous impulses to share our good 
things with others, and may the Spirit of Christ touch our 
lives with a new spirit of love and joy that will bless and 
make beautiful all our days. And this we ask in his name. 

Amen.” Offer the Lord’s Prayer together. 


THE DAYSPRING FROM ON HIGH 


Motto for the Week: “Glory to God in the Highest and 
on earth peace, good will toward men ” Luke 2 :i4. 

Hymn: “Joy to the world! the Lord is come —Isaac 
Watts. 

Scripture: Luke 1 : 6 y-So. 

Meditation: THE DAY SPRING FROM ON HIGH . 

Text: “The dayspring from on high hath visited us.” 
Luke 1 78. 

Did you see Halley’s comet? Have you ever heard 
how the astronomers pass the word along when one of their 
number finds a new comet or catches sight of an old one 
returning from its spacious wanderings? It is this way. 
There exists among the astronomers a regular organization 
for this purpose. It is world-wide and has two centers, 
one in Europe and one in America. The American center 
is Harvard University. 

If, we will say, at the Lick Observatory in California, 
one of these mysterious celestial objects is discerned some 
night the fortunate discoverer will at once telegraph to 
Cambridge, giving its position in the heavens. As soon as 
the orbit can be learned the facts about this also are sent 
to Harvard. Both reports are at once sent from Harvard 
under the ocean as fast as lightning can carry them, to the 
European central station at Kiel, in Germany. From Har¬ 
vard and Kiel the information is distributed by telegraph 
to the observatories of Europe and America. Thus, no 

250 


THE DAY SPRING FROM ON HIGH 


251 

matter what the weather may be at one place or at many, 
there will always be a number of trained eyes with their 
powerful lenses as aids, fastened upon the heavenly visitor, 
who will be under constant observation until he sees fit to 
leave our solar system and fly beyond the range of our pry¬ 
ing telescopes. 

For the sake of cheapness and accuracy a code is used 
in sending these messages, and at the end of each mes¬ 
sage, to serve as a check, a “control word” is given, a word 
that represents a number which is the mean of all num¬ 
bers used in the message. It is interesting to know how 
much pains the scientific men take to get at these facts 
about invisible bodies floating aimlessly around in distant 
space—a knowledge not likely to be of the least use to any¬ 
body, if that can safely be said concerning any knowledge 
whatever. 

But as we relate these plans of the wise men we are led 
to wonder whether we are half as eager to spread abroad 
over the world the infinitely important good news which 
was proclaimed out of the opening heavens two thousand 
years ago—the news of the advent of Christ, the Saviour! 

The song of Zacharias, which suggests our Christmas 
meditation, is an exceedingly beautiful and meaningful 
song. It expresses with exactness and elegance the chief 
points of the plan of salvation, the doings of Christ’s fore¬ 
runner, and the mercy and motive of God in providing for 
our redemption. “The Dayspring from on high hath vis¬ 
ited us.” 

I. These words well express the joy of Christ’s ad¬ 
vent. This joy, this blessedness, is set forth under the 
idea of the rising sun. “The Dayspring from on high hath 
visited us.” The word “day-spring” is defined as “the 
dawn,” “the beginning of day,” or “the first appearance of 
the light.” It is found quite frequently in the New Tes- 


252 THE DAY SPRING FROM ON HIGH 

tament, but it is rendered by the word “East.” It is much 
like our word “Orient,” which really signifies the place of 
sunrise. “We have seen His star in the east” is a form of 
saying, “We saw His star in the Day-spring.” Our version 
is very happy in the use of the syllable “spring.” In the 
land of Palestine there is almost no such thing as twilight. 
The sun comes out from behind the hills quite abruptly and 
is all on hand at once for the ordinary day’s work of flood¬ 
ing the world with light. 

The worth of Christ to the world and the joy of his ad¬ 
vent is frequently set forth in the Scriptures under the idea 
of the rising sun, or star, or a light in the world. In Num¬ 
bers he is spoken of as the “Star of Jacob.” In Isaiah it is 
prophetically said: “The people that have walked in dark¬ 
ness have seen a great light.” In Malachi it is said: “The 
Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in his wings.” 
Similar descriptions are given in the New Testament by 
John the Baptist, who was sent to bear witness that “that 
was the true light,” by Christ Himself, who said, “I am the 
light of the world;” by Peter, who spoke of the “Day star’s 
rise in our hearts,” and in the Revelation, where Christ 
is spoken of as “the bright and morning star” and “the 
light of the New Jerusalem.” What intense joy is im¬ 
plied when it is said: “The Dayspring from on high hath 
visited us.” 

We have read that near the North Pole, the night last¬ 
ing for months, when the people expect the day is about to 
dawn some messengers go up to the highest point to watch, 
and when they see the first streak of day they put on their 
brightest possible apparel, and embrace each other and say, 
“Behold the sun!” and the cry goes around the land, “Be¬ 
hold the sun!” The world was in darkness. Long cen¬ 
turies had the people lain in ignorance and in sin. The 
cry of Zacharias was the joyful one: “Behold the Sun!” 


THE DAY SPRING FROM ON HIGH 


253 


“Behold the Sun of Righteousness is rising with healing in 
his wings!” “The Dayspring from on high hath visited 
us r 

II. These words well express the purpose of Christ’s 
coming. It was to give light. What the sun is in the ma¬ 
terial world that Christ is to us in the spiritual world. He 
is the author, the source of light. As the face of nature 
revives or withers according as the influence of the sun is 
increased or diminished, so the soul of man continues dead 
or is quickened according as the Sun of Righteousness 
withholds or imparts his invigorating rays. He hath vis¬ 
ited our benighted world. 

“The whole world was lost in the darkness of sin, 

The light of the world is Jesus.” 

A band of fugitives were crossing an Eastern desert. 
The night was dark, but they determined to push on. Soon 
they lost their way and had to spend the night in anxiety 
and fear. It seemed as if the night would never pass. But 
almost all at once the sun rose, bringing daylight and show¬ 
ing the way of safety. Not one of them ever forgot that 
sun rising. So to the people of the world in their wander¬ 
ings. They were lost—lost in the darkness of sin. But 
the Dayspring from on high hath visited us, hath risen 
upon us, making plain the way of eternal safety. Christ 
is the dawn, Christ is our Dayspring, and the purpose of 
his coming was to give us the light that would lead us to 
eternal bliss. 

III. But what is the source of all this blessedness? It 
is “the tender mercy of our God.” The original statement 
is, “The mercy of the heart of our God.” This 
seems to mean not only tenderness, but mueh more. The 
mercy of the heart of God is, of course, the mercy of his 
great tenderness, the mercy of his infinite gentleness and 


254 


THE DAY SPRING FROM ON HIGH 


consideration, the mercy of his very soul of love. God 
shows his tender mercy in that he deigns to visit us at all. 
His great visit to us is in the incarnation of our Lord 
and Saviour Jesus Christ. The proclamation of the Gospel 
to a nation or to any individual is a visit of God’s mercy. 
The entrance into our hearts of the Holy Spirit, wooing 
us to Christ and changing the current of our lives, is a 
visit of God’s mercy. 

Our God shows his tender mercy in that he visits us 
with such wonderful and joyous results. Joy, peace, hap¬ 
piness, hope, heaven—these are all implied in the fact that 
the Dayspring from on high hath visited us. At this Ad¬ 
vent season let us get into our hearts more of the blessed¬ 
ness we may have from the consciousness of the fact that 
the Dayspring hath visited us, that there is sunrise for our 
souls. And let us make known the message of Christ’s 
coming to all the inhabitants of the world. 

Prayer: “O God, who hast so loved the world as to 
give thine only Son for its redemption, grant us joyful hearts 
as we approach the Advent time. With angels and spirits 
of thy saints in glory, we bow before thy throne, O Christ, 
remembering with thanksgiving that thou wert once a child 
of Bethlehem. Thou, too, hast entered by the gates of birth 
into the mystery of our humanity. By an infant’s weakness 
and the obedience of a son thou hast laid hold upon our 
mortal life. Thou hast shared its pains and sorrows, its la¬ 
bor and repose. Thou hast known the rest of friendship 
and the bitterness of misunderstanding. By the fellowship 
of mother’s love in Bethlehem and father’s care in Egypt, thy 
boyhood in the fields of Nazareth, thy handling of the work¬ 
man’s tools and wages, thou hast made thyself our Brother. 
As we bring gifts to others whom thou hast given us for 
love and care, we offer thee our heart’s thanksgiving and 


THE DAY SPRING FROM ON HIGH 


255 


the service of our lives. Our richest gifts are thine. Help 
us to minister in loving kindness to our brothers, and let 
thy peace be multipled upon the earth and thy will be ac¬ 
complished in the affairs of men. Amen.” 

Repeat the Lord’s Prayer in unison. 


LOOKING OUT FOR PORT 


Motto for the Week: “Which hope we have as an an¬ 
chor of the soul , both sure and steadfast.” Heb. 6:19. 

Hymn: “Ten thousand times ten thousand.” —Henry 
Alford. 

Scripture: Hebrews 6:1-19. 

Meditation: LOOKING OUT FOR PORT. 

Text: “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious 
appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.” 
Titus 2:13. 

A devoted Christian in a prayer meeting recently, by 
way of testimony, said that when, many years since, he 
crossed old ocean, he was much in the habit from day to 
day, of looking over the ship’s side, particularly near the 
prow, and watching the staunch and noble vessel as she 
steadily and irresistibly ploughed her way through the 
waves. Just under the bowsprit, and serving the purpose 
of a figure-head, was the image of a human face. This face 
to him came to be invested with a wondrous interest. 
Whatever the hour, whether by night or day; whatever 
the weather, whether in sunshine or in storm, that face 
seemed ever looking forward steadfastly to port. Some¬ 
times fearful tempests would prevail. Great surges would 
1 ise, and, for a time, completely submerge the face of his 
friend. But as soon as the wrathful billow subsided, and 
the vessel recovered from its lurch, on looking again over 
the ship’s side, there, notwithstanding the fearful shock 

256 


LOOKING OUT FOR PORT 


257 


sustained, the placid face of his friend was to be seen 
still, as heretofore, faithfully, steadily looking out for port. 
“And so,” he exclaimed, his countenance meantime radiant 
with the light of the Christian’s hope, and spiritual joy, 
“and so I humbly trust it is in my case. Yea, whatever 
the trials of the past, notwithstanding all the toils and dis¬ 
appointments of the present, by the grace of God, I am 
still looking out for port; and not long hence I am antici¬ 
pating a joyful, triumphant, abundant entrance therein.” 

Any one who has crossed the ocean knows something 
of the exhilaration that traveler felt as he watched the 
steady advance of the boat’s prow through the waves in 
the direction toward port. Any one who is a Christian 
knows also what that voyager meant as he felt the thrill 
of the consciousness that he was daily drawing nearer to 
home. As Christians we stand on the bow of the ship of 
life and are “looking for that blessed hope and the glor¬ 
ious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus 
Christ”—we are looking out for port. 

I. How cheering to the heart is such a hope as this. 
Do we not know that even a horse travels better when his 
head is toward home? The day’s work in the field may 
have been hard. The journey made may have been long. 
But, however heavy the work or long the way, when the 
faithful animal is turned toward home his whole attitude 
changes; his head is lifted, his eyes and his ears are turned 
forward, and he quickens his interest and his pace. How 
cheering to the heart is the Christian’s hope! He counts 
not the battles he has fought with sin and Satan, he thinks 
not of the difficulties by the way. He is journeying toward 
home! He is looking out for port. 

II. How may a Christian brighten up his hope? One 
way is to think—“think on these things.” Christians would 
have brighter hopes if they took more time for meditation. 


258 


LOOKING OUT FOR PORT 


We live too much in a hurry. We are “jostled out of our 
spirituality.” Some one has said that spiritual meditation 
“is a lost art.” It is certain that there have been times when 
more emphasis was placed upon it by Christians. Whether 
it was done wisely and well we cannot say; but this we 
know, that we cannot have a bright, living, vital, Christian 
hope without spiritual meditation and thought-giving. 

Another way in which to brighten our hope is to read— 
to read God’s word. “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing 
by the word of God.” The Bible is the Christian voyager’s 
chart. That traveler we mentioned could not have been 
happy had he not felt sure the ship he was on was heading 
in the right direction. How did he know that? From the 
chart and compass. Read; inform yourself; know where 
you are; know which way you are heading. The better we 
Know our way the brighter hope will be. Indeed, we 
can have any hope that is founded on knowledge only by 
knowing our Bibles. Bible-taught, Bible-loving Christians 
are hopeful Christians. They are able to give a reason for 
the hope that is in them. They, and they alone, have any 
adequate knowledge of the home toward which they are 
hastening, and of the joys that await them there. They, 
and they alone, have any proper taste for those joys or 
preparation to take share in them. 

There are other means of brightening hope. The lis¬ 
tening to testimony, Christian testimony, will do it. Chris 
tians have the power of cheering each other very much in 
this way—by the giving of testimony to what they know 
and feel and have experienced. “Then they that feared 
the Lord spake often one to another”—they did this in 
Malachi’s time—they do it in our time, and they minister 
greatly to one another’s hope and joy whenever they do. 

And sometimes the best way to brighten hope is to go 
to work. It is always a good way if we are not working. 


LOOKING OUT FOR PORT 


259 


We have read of a doubting Christian who once asked a 
minister where heaven is. The minister said to him—for 
he was one of his rich parishioners—“I have just been to 
see the widow Manning; if you will order her a barrel of 
flour and some groceries, and a ton of coal; then go up 
to her home on the hill and see her; and read a chapter, 
and kneel down and pray with her, I promise that you will 
know where heaven is before you get through.” The man 
tried it. He did as was suggested. And not only did all 
his doubts vanish, his hope brighten, but he said that he had 
heaven in his own heart before he got through. 

Think, read, study, pray, give testimony, and hear testi¬ 
mony, and be a worker in the kingdom of Christ, and 
your hope is sure to be a bright and blessed one, and every 
day of your life voyage will be bringing you nearer to the 
port toward which you look so steadily. 

III. What a glorious hope it is the Christian cherishes! 
A hope of the heavenly home. A hope of entering the 
spiritual port of eternity. A hope of an abundant entrance 
into the heavenly kingdom. We need not try to describe 
that kingdom. No one could if he would. But let us 
cherish our hope and live to arrive there and share in its 
joys. 

Prayer: “Grant unto us, Almighty God, by thy good 
Spirit, that we, feeling towards thee as children, and filled 
full of trust, and hope, and faith, may remain so fixed, 
that, in the dark, we may trust where we cannot see, and 
hope where all seems doubtful, ever looking unto thee as 
our Father that doeth all things well, our Father that or- 
dereth all. Thus may we, knowing that all things are in 
thy hands, abide thy time, patiently doing the work thou 
Last given us to do. We ask through Christ. Amen.” 

Unite in offering the Lord’s Prayer. 


HOLD FAST THY CROWN 


Motto for the Week: “Lay hold on eternal life” .1 
Tim. 6:12. 

Hymn: “Fight the good fight with all thy might .”— 
T. S. B. Monsell. 

Scripture: Revelation 3 :1-22. 

Meditation: HOLD FAST THY CROWN. 

Text: “Hold fast that thou hast that no man take thy 
crown.” Rev. 3:11. 

The church at Philadelphia was commended for pos¬ 
sessing some strength, for keeping Christ’s word, and for 
not denying his name. But the message came to its members 
exhorting them to hold fast and watch. It was a message 
to them, but it comes as a much needed one to us also. 
'‘Hold fast that thou hast.” See that “no man take thy 
crown.” Watch your crown! Let no man take it from 
you! Hold it fast! 

I. There is always danger of losing one’s crown. This 
is true of earthly crowns. A few years ago the presence 
in Washington of ex-queen Liliuokalani, of Hawaii, was 
made the occasion of much newspaper gossip and jest and 
scoff. As some one has said, referring to that occasion, 
“There does not seem to be anything more utterly out of 
place in the world than a dethroned king or queen. While 
they are on the throne there are plenty to do them rever¬ 
ence, and their power for good or ill is very great; but 
when the crown is taken from their heads their situation 
is pitiful indeed.” Such an event as the uncrowning of 

260 


HOLD FAST THY CROWN 


261 


Hawaii’s queen may well suggest to us the emphasis we 
ought to put on those earnest words of Christ, “Hold fast 
that thou hast that no man take thy crown.” 

There are many ways in which we may lose our crown 
—the victor’s wreath that awaits at the goal of life. We 
need not enumerate them. Neglect, the not guarding it, the 
not holding fast to it, the exposing of it in dangerous places 
—much could be said of the folly of these and many other 
ways in which people put their “crown of life” in jeopardy. 

II. Consider, therefore, secondly, some important rea¬ 
sons for obeying the injunction to hold fast one’s crown. 

‘ Hold fast,” keep a good grip upon it, “that no man take 
thy crown.” 

“Hold fastthat which you have is such excellent 
treasure. You have faith. It may seen* little. It may not 
be really much. But what there is of it is a very precious 
thing to you. Hold it fast. You have truth. It may be 
little or much; but what there is of it is very valuable to 
you. It is valuable in itself, and besides, it may lead you 
into more truth. Therefore hold what you have fast. “Buy 
the truth and sell it not.” Buy it at any price. Sell it at 
no price. Hold fast to truth. You have hope. It may not 
be as large or bright a hope as you would like, but such 
as it is it is very precious. At what price would you part 
with even the sort of hope you have? Hold it fast. Let 
no man despoil you of it. 

“Hold fast.” There is enough at stake to cause you to 
be desperately in earnest. Your “crown,”—your wreath 
of victory at life’s goal—everything is at stake— therefore 
show the mind and muscle of an earnest man concerned 
about an earnest matter. 

“Hold fast.” There is enough opposition to require it. 
It comes from Satan. It comes from satanic men. Let 
no man take thy crown. Bad comanionship only has lost 


262 


HOLD FAST THY CROWN 


many a man his crown. Opposition comes also from our 
own sinful nature. Watch! Hold fast! He is considered a 
careless pilot who wrecks a vessel twice on the same rocks; 
yet there are Christians who almost wreck themselves for 
time and for eternity on the same sin twenty times. 

“Hold fast.” There is incentive enough to inspire to it. 
It is to retain right to thy “crown”—thy wreath of victory 
2t the goal of life. It is a crown to be bestowed by Christ’s 
own hand. Hold fast. Endure. Push on in the Christian 
life. Watch that you get not delayed or side-tracked. Hold 
steadily to present duty. Never give over or give up. 
Keep in the way until your crown of life is secure. 

Prayer: “O Lord our God, we cry to thee. Thou art 
the source of good, and our lot is cast in a world which 
sin has made evil, and it besets us from day to day. The 
world besets us, so does its evil. Wilt thou not, O gracious 
God, answer the prayer which from our longing hearts we 
laise to thee, deliver us from evil. Temptation is so fierce, 
so alert, so everywhere that we are, that it seems almost 
like a thing of life. It springs upon us, we being unaware 
and unready. We fall into the traps and pitfalls which it 
;ays and digs for our feet, and we rise stained and bruised 
and sometimes broken. We pray thee, O Lord, lead us not 
into temptation. What shall we render to thee for what 
we have already received? We plead our love for him 
who hath loved and redeemed us from sin by his own 
blood. We trust our all to thee, in him. ‘We are per¬ 
suaded that he is able to keep that which we have com¬ 
mitted unto him against that day.’ Let not our trust be 
found misplaced in the day of our need, we beseech thee. 
And, O God, forgive us our sins, we beseech thee, and 
draw us ever nearer to thyself, and at the last let us be 
evermore with thee. For Christ’s sake. Amen.” 

Unite together in the Lord’s Prayer. 


THE SWEET INCENSE OF FAMILY 
PRAYERS. 

Some Suggested Prayers for Use in Family Worship. 

“There was a marriage at Cana of Galilee * * * 
and Jesus was bidden.” John 2:1-11. 

OUR DAILY WORK. 

“O Lord, give thy blessing, we pray thee, to our daily 
work, that we may do it in faith and heartily, as to the Lord 
and not unto men. All our powers of body and mind are 
thine, and we would fain devote them to thy service. Sanc¬ 
tify them, and the work in which they are engaged; let us 
not be slothful, but fervent in spirit, and do thou, O Lord, 
so bless our efforts that they may bring forth in us the 
fruits of true wisdom. Teach us to seek after truth and 
enable us to gain it; but grant that we may ever speak the 
truth in love; that, while we know earthly things, we may 
know thee, and be known by thee, through and in thy Son 
Jesus Christ. Give us this day thy Holy Spirit, that we 
may be thine in body and spirit in all our work and all our 
refreshments, through Jesus Christ thy Son, our Lord. 
Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven.” etc. 

THY WILL OUR PEACE. 

r. 

“We desire, O God, this day most earnestly to please 
thee; to do thy will in each several thing which thou shalt 

263 


264 THE SWEET INCENSE OF FAMILY PRAYER 


give us to do; to bear each thing which thou shalt allow 
to befall us contrary to our will, meekly, humbly, patiently, 
as a gift from thee to subdue self-will in us, aiid to make 
thy will wholly ours. What we do, make us do simply as 
thy children; let us be, throughout the day, as children in 
their loving father’s presence, ever looking up to thee. May 
we love thee for thy love. May we thank thee, -if not in 
words, yet in our hearts, for each gift of thy love, for 
each comfort which thou allowest us day by day. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

GENERAL THANKSGIVING. 

“Almighty God, Father of all mercies, we, thine un¬ 
worthy servants, do give thee most humble and hearty 
thanks for all thy goodness and loving kindness to us, and 
to all men. We bless thee for our creation, preservation, 
and all the blessings of this life; but, above all, for thine 
inestimable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord 
Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of 
glory. And, we beseech thee, give us that due sense of all 
thy mercies, that our hearts may be unfeignedly thankful, 
and that we may show forth thy praise, not only with our 
lips, but in our lives; by giving up ourselves to thy service, 
and by walking before thee in holiness and righteousness 
all our days, through Jesus Christ our Lord; to whom with 
thee and the Holy Ghost, be all honor and glory, world 
without end. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

MORNING MERCIES. 

O Lord God Almighty, we thank thee for having pre¬ 
served us through the past night, and for granting us 
health and strength for our duties on this day. Blessed be 


THE SWEET INCENSE OF FAMILY PRAYER 265 


the Lord for all his mercies; for giving us food to eat and 
raiment to put on, and for delivering us from many evils 
which our sins have justly deserved. We thank thee espe¬ 
cially, O Lord, for the gift of Jesus Christ, thy Son. We 
confess before thee our exceeding guilt, and we pray thee, 
for Christ’s sake, to pardon our offenses, and to receive our 
souls when we die. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

ABIDING TRUST 

“O God, our Father, help us to trust in thee. Keep us 
from anxious thought for the things of today and for the 
things of tomorrow. Help us to realize that thou art as 
rich in resources in the future as in the past, that as thou 
hast been thou wilt ever be near us. Our experience of 
joy and sorrow has taught us how great is our need of 
thee. Increase and impress our trust from day to day as 
we follow in the path that leads to thee. Through Christ, 
our Lord, we ask. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

GRATITUDE AND CONSECRATION. 

“O Gracious Father, we worship thee as the source of 
all the blessings of our lives. From thee cometh down 
every good and perfect gift. The day comes and brings 
with it that which thou givest: Continued life, and light, 
and beauty, and work, and opportunity to improve the gifts 
that are equally from thy hand. The night comes and 
brings with it peace and quiet, rest of mind and body and 
preparation for what awaits us in another day of toil. We 
hunger and are fed. We thirst and are satisfied. We cry 
out for thee and thou givest us no less than Thyself. We 
are sinful and thou pardonest. We are forsaken and thou 


266 THE SWEET INCENSE OF FAMILY PRAYER 


comfortest. We are weak and thou strengthenest. We 
are unholy and thou purifiest. We are frail and perishing 
and thou givest through Christ eternal life. Thanks be 
unto thee for thy great gifts! May they lead us to admira¬ 
tion and worship, to gratitude and consecration, to humility 
and a service that shall be counted worthy because offered 
in the name of thy dear Son our Saviour, to whom with 
thee, the Father, and with thee, O Holy Spirit, be praise 
throughout the ages. Amen” 

‘‘Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

THE NEW DAY. 

“We praise thee, O God, with the morning light, and 
in the brightness of a new day we bless thy Holy name. 
For all thou hast bestowed upon us with the gift of life, 
making us in thine own image, and granting us to share as 
children in thy knowledge and thy love, in thy work and 
in thy joy; we thank thee, heavenly Father. For all good 
things in the world, for food and raiment, for home and 
friendship, for useful tasks and pure pleasures; we thank 
thee, heavenly Father. For all spiritual blessings, for thy 
holy Word, for the Christian fellowship, for the good ex¬ 
ample and blessed memory of thy saints, for the secret in¬ 
fluence of thy Spirit; we thank thee, heavenly Father. And 
above all we praise and bless thee for the life and death 
of thy dear Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

THE LOVE OF CHRIST. 

“O Lord, our God, we thank thee for the revelation of 
Thyself in Jesus Christ our Lord. We thank thee for the 
breadth and length and height and depth of the love of 
Christ which passeth knowledge. We know what his love 


THE SWEET INCENSE OF FAMILY PRAYER 267 

things, to live a life at peace with God and ourselves. May 
we understand the universality of that love and how God 
so loved the world that He gave His only beloved Son for 
the life of the world, and may we not be satisfied until 
every nation and every man shall have heard that wonderful 
story of redeeming love. May the love of Christ constrain 
us to a sacrificial service, and may the Spirit of Jesus 
guide us in his footsteps. For His name’s sake. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

ABUNDANT LIFE. 

“O Lord, our God, we remember that Jesus said that 
he had come into the world to give life and to give it more 
be the expression of our faith. Bless the Church of Christ 
abundantly, and we pray for thy great gift of life to us. 
The life in us that like the tree of life, bears fruit for 
every season and scatters its healing among the nations. 
We would not be satisfied with a mere existence. We 
would enjoy the abundant life, a life of peace and power, 
a life of purity and purpose, a life of service and sacrifice. 
Breathe upon us, O God, and inspire us to noble thoughts 
and to high endeavors that we may be workers together 
with God. Bless our home, and may the gladness of the 
new life make joy everywhere, and may the voice of song 
for service. Bless all who give of their time and talent 
for the benefit of others, and may the time soon come 
when we shall see his face and the light of his countenance 
will be our light of life. For His name’s sake. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

GRACE AND GLORY 

“O Lord of grace and glory, we thank thee for the 
grace wherein we stand, and for the grace that awaits us. 


268 THE SWEET INCENSE OF FAMILY PRAYER 

To glorify thee is our chief end, and thou wilt crown our 
end with the glory which thou hast promised them who 
through Christ become the sons of God. We pray thee that 
thy grace may be shed abroad in our hearts, more and more 
from day to day, that here on earth we may still more and 
more glorify thee by lives which exhibit the power of the 
Son of God. To this end, we beseech thee, pour on us 
in copious baptism the Holy Spirit. We would live the 
spiritual life, O Lord God Almighty, and we plead with 
thee for that indwelling of grace that will enable us to 
realize our own belongings. And to the Father and the Son 
and Holy Ghost be the glory, as it was in the beginning 
Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

THE HURRYING HOURS. 

“O Almighty Father, we go to the duties of this day 
with gladsome hearts, since all days are Thine; but we 
also beseech thee to give us due seriousness in our joy, be¬ 
cause this one day’s work bears upon the destiny of our 
own immortal souls, upon the well-being of society, of 
which we are a vital part, and upon the speed of thy King¬ 
dom’s coming. Help us to be sincere in our motives, strictly 
conscientious in all our methods, large-visioned in our 
ends aimed at, severely loyal to thee, instant and unwaver- 
mg in our obedience to the least revealings of thy will. 
Teach us to bear patiently with our fellow-men, to be self- 
mastered under the ills of life, to heroically take up the 
cross and be crucified for thee if Thou does need it of us. 
Pardon our sins and extend to our infirmities the long- 
suffering of thy grace. Grant us to see Him who is in¬ 
visible, and to spend even the unconscious moments of the 
day under the spell of Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord. 


THE SWEET INCENSE OF FAMILY PRAYER 269 


Help us to enter into his serenity in the presence of the 
hurrying hours. Key our hearts to his triumphant note, 
that we may today have a share in his victory; and when 
life’s long day is done, waken us into the glory of thy 
perfect tomorrow. We ask it all in the name of Jesus 
Christ, thy Son. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

THE PERPETUAL PRESENCE. 

“Our Father, we seek the shelter and the peace of thy 
presence, that we may find the strength and inspiration that 
we need for the day’s work! But we would carry the gift 
vouchsafed to us in the place of prayer out into the ac¬ 
tivities of our busy hours so perfectly that our households 
and offices 'shall be sanctuaries where we find thee near 
and good. Grant us the power to make the spirit of our 
moments of prayer the spirit wherein we work and rejoice 
day and night. We long for the ceaseless communion, for 
the perpetual presence of thyself, our Father. Grant this 
blessing to our dear ones, to all wayward and careless men 
and women, to the aged and feeble, to the sick and the be¬ 
reaved, and to little children. May we all tarry this day in 
the Father’s presence! We ask through Jesus Christ, our 
Lord. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 


GRACE BEFORE MEAT. 


Some Suggested Forms for Use at Table. 

“For these and all thy mercies we give thanks, O God.” 


We thank thee, our Father, for this food. Bless it to 
our use and strengthen us for thy service. We ask through 
Christ, our Lord. Amen. 


We thank thee, our Father, for thy remembrance of us 
and for thy provision for all our needs. 


Lord, help us to receive all good things as from thy 
hand, and to use them to thy praise. Amen. 


Heavenly Father, make us thankful to thee, and mindful 
of others, as we receive these blessings, in Jesus’ Name. 
Amen. 


O Lord God bless the gifts of thy hand to our use, 
and us to thy service, for Christ’s sake. Amen. 

270 







GRACE before meat 


271 


Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, 
bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget 
not all his benefits. Amen. (Repeated in concert.) 


Our Father: by whose kindness we live to behold the 
light of this day, and by whose bounty these gifts are be¬ 
stowed ; give us strength to work this day in love and cour¬ 
age and gratitude; through Christ our Lord. Amen. 


Our Father: who hast brought us thus far through the 
day, and given us this rest and refreshment; sustain us till 
eventide, and bring us safe and thankful to the close of the 
day. Amen. 


O God, our Heavenly Father: whose gifts have crowned 
the day with good, we thank thee for these tokens of thy 
loving care. Let thy presence bless us through the evening 
hours; and give us thankful hearts for all thy loving kind¬ 
ness. Amen. 


We thank thee, O Lord, for the mercies that are new 
every morning and fresh every evening. Help us in re¬ 
turn to give thee the love of our hearts and the service of 
our hands, for Christ’s sake. Amen. 


Lord Jesus, be our holy Guest, 

Our morning Joy, our evening Rest; 

And with our daily bread impart 

Thy love and peace to every heart. Amen. 







272 


GRACE BEFORE MEAT 


Be present at our table, Lord, 

Be here and everywhere adored; 

These mercies bless, and grant that we 
May feast in Paradise with thee. 


Bless to us this Sabbath day, our Father, and go with 
us through all its hours. As we take this food from thy 
hand, so may we receive from thee the Word of Life today. 
For Jesus’ sake. Amen, 

FOR CHILDREN’S USE. 

For these and all thy mercies we give thanks, O God. 
Amen. 


Dear Jesus, we thank thee for this food. Bless us and 
keep us all. Amen. 


God bless this food, and bless us all, 
And keep us safe, whate’er befall. 

For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


We thank Thee, Lord, for daily bread, 
The blessings on this table spread. 

And pray thee, Lord, that we may be 
And do whatever pleases thee. 

For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


Lord, bless the food which now we take, 
And make us good, for Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


Dear Father in heaven, we owe thee everything we have. 
We thank thee for it all, and we will try to do thy will. 
For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 








CHILDREN'S PRAYERS, 


EVENING PRAYERS. 

Now I lay me down to sleep; 

I pray thee, Lord, my soul to keep; 

If I should die before I wake, 

I pray thee, Lord, my soul to take; 

And this I ask for Jesus’ sake. Amen. 

This night, my God! for Jesus’ sake, 

Thy blessing give to me; 

Pardon my sins, and may I wake 
A better child to be. Amen. 

m yg ^ 

Jesus, tender Shepherd, hear me; 

Bless thy little lamb tonight; 

Through the darkness be thou near me, 

Keep me safe till morning light. 

All this day thy hand hath led me, 

And I thank thee for thy care; 

Thou hast clothed me, warmed and fed me, 
Listen to my evening prayer. 

Let my sins be all forgiven; 

Bless the friends I love so well; 

Take me, when I die, to heaven, 

Happy there with thee to dwell. 

273 


274 


CHILDREN’S PRAYERS 


1 % % % 

Dear Father in heaven! I thank thee that thou hast 
been with me during this day, and hast brought me safely 
to its close. Help me to be thankful for thy watchful 
care over me. Be thou now also with me during the dark¬ 
ness of the night. Watch over me and let no evil come nigh 
unto me. Give unto me sweet and refreshing rest, and 
grant that I may arise again in health and vigor. Help me 
to be thy loving child, and to grow in grace daily. All this 
I ask for Jesus’ sake. Amen. 

MORNING PRAYERS. 

Lord, I awake and see the light, 

For thou hast kept me through the night; 

To thee I lift my hands and pray, 

Keep me from sin throughout this day; 

And if I die before ’tis done, 

Save me through Jesus Christ thy Son. Amen. 

& % 

I thank thee, Lord, for having kept 
My soul and body while I slept. 

I pray thee, Lord, that through this day, 

In all I do, or think, or say, 

I may be kept from harm and sin, 

Let me in thy blest love partake 
And made both pure and good within. 

H& vz % 

Now I awake to see the day, 

I give my soul to Christ away; 

If I should die before the even, 

I trust he’ll take me up in heaven. Amen. 


CHILDREN’S PRAYERS 


275 


SS 

O God, my Father in heaven! I thank thee that thou 
hast preserved and kept me during the night that is passed, 
and permitted me to see the light of a new day. Be thou 
with me this day, and fit me for its duties and privileges. 
Help me to love thee above all things. Help me to love 
and obey my parents and teachers. Keep thou me from 
evil, and incline my heart to that which is good, for Jesus’ 
sake. Amen. 


PRAYER HYMN. 

Gentle Jesus, meek and mild, 

Look upon a little child; 

Pity my simplicity, 

Suffer me to come to thee. 

Fain I would to thee be brought; 
Gracious God, forbid it not; 

In the kingdom of thy grace, 

Give a little child a place. 

O, supply my every want, 

Feed the young and tender plant, 

Day and night my keeper be, 

Every moment watch round me. Amen. 


CLOSET AND ALTAR 


Some Suggested Prayers for Private Use. 

“Enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, 
pray to thy Father which is in secret ; and thy Father zvhich 
seeth in secret shall reward thee openly” Matt. 6:6. 

A DAY’S DUTIES. 

“With gratitude for thy protection during the night 
watches, I begin, O Lord, the new life of a new day. My 
path will be the busy thoroughfares, walk thou with me 
unseen. Let not my heart cleave to these things, but 
through the sweet influence of thy Spirit, incline me to seek 
things that endure. I shall be tempted today; I may be 
drawn to the verge of some awful mistake, in the swift 
moment of danger when I cannot withdraw to my closet 
of prayer,—give me to know the right and the power to do 
it. Let not trifles ruffle my temper, nor disappointments 
unman me; let not exacting duties make me selfish and 
churlish; give me rather a sunshiny face, and forthright 
hand, and the joy of a word fitly spoken to some timid, dis¬ 
couraged soul. Strength for the day’s service give me in 
such measure as Thou wiliest; pass by my sins of omission; 
and when the shadows fall, bring me again, unsullied by 
word or deed, to sweet refreshing sleep. Through Christ, 
I ask. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

2 76 


CLOSET AND ALTAR 


277 


DAILY GRACE FOR DAILY NEED. 

“O God, my Father in heaven, I lift my heart in grat¬ 
itude to thee, for thou hast kept me through the night. I 
thank thee that thou dost not grow weary in blessing me. 
Thy loving kindness is ever new unto me. I thank thee 
for thy preserving care over me during the night, and for 
the light of another day. In thy name, O Lord, I would 
enter upon the toils and cares of a* new day. Be thou with 
me and guide me in all my engagements, that I may serve 
thee and live to thee. Thine I am, and unto thee would 
live. 

O God, I humbly confess before thee my sins and in¬ 
firmities, and beseech thee, enter not into judgment with 
me. For the sake of thy Son, Jesus Christ, my Lord and 
Saviour, forgive all my sins and blot out all my iniquities. 
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right 
spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence, 
and take not thy Holy Spirit from me. A broken spirit 
and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. 

O Lord, help me to begin this day in thy fear and to 
end it to thy glory. I am weak; be thou my strength. I 
am ignorant and do easily err; be thou my light and my 
guide. Help me to live soberly, righteously and godly in 
this present evil world. Help me to go forth to my daily 
duties with cheerfulness and in humble dependence upon 
thy aid. Prosper my labors and establish the work of my 
hands. 

O God, I humbly invoke thy blessing upon all my friends 
and neighbors. Suit thy blessing to the wants of all. 
Prosper and bless thy people. Bless thy church, ministers 
and people. Bless my pastor in his efforts to lead souls 
to the Saviour of the world and to glorify thy name. Bless 
the preaching thy word, to the salvation of precious souls 


278 


CLOSET AND ALTAR 


and to the praise of thy glorious grace, through Jesus Christ, 
our Lord. Amen.” 

"Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

PURITY OF HEART. 

"Eternal God, sanctify my body and soul, my thoughts 
and my intentions, my words and actions, that whatso¬ 
ever I shall think, or speak, or do, may be by me designed 
for the glorification of thy Name, and, by thy blessing, it 
may be effective and successful in the work of God, accord¬ 
ing as it can be capable. Lord, turn my necessities into 
virtue; the works of nature into the works of grace; by 
making them orderly, regular, temperate; and let no pride 
or self-seeking, no covetousness or revenge, no little ends 
and low imaginations, pollute my spirit, and unhallow any 
of my words and actions; but let my body be a servant of 
my spirit, and both body and spirit servants of Jesus; that, 
doing all things for thy glory here, I may be partaker of 
thy glory hereafter, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.” 

"Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

LIFE INDEED. 

"O Lord, I thank thee for life, and for the privileges of 
living it, for faith to strengthen it, hope to brighten it, love 
to sweeten it, and truth to enlighten it. May the duty of 
each day be performed faithfully, and while I must not wish 
for sorrow, yet when it comes, help me, O Lord, to find 
thy sweet portion in it, and in its darkness may I ever look 
for the glints of thy welcome sunshine. To everything 
which in thy wisdom thou dost send to my life, may I be 
able to say with sincerity, ‘Thy will be done.’ Give me the 
grace to be courageous in danger, patient in suffering, pure 
in thought, kind in deed, and true in friendship. Make me 
unswerving in my progress towards my ideal, and above all 


CLOSET AND ALTAR 


279 


give me a clean heart, for a clean heart maketh a pure life. 
May I ever see and find the best in my fellows, and as for 
their faults may I ever throw around them the sweet mantle 
of charity. May the greatest proof that I love thee be 
found in my sincere and unselfish love for my brother-man. 
And when my weary soul weighs anchor, cut softly and ten¬ 
derly, O Lord, this earthly cable that binds me to the shore 
of time, and assure me a safe voyage across the ‘bar,’ and 
1 shall count all the pains of this mortal life a privilege to 
bear, knowing that at last I shall hear the ‘Well done’ from 
my heavenly Pilot. I ask through Christ. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

FAITH, HOPE, LOVE. 

O God give me fatih: Faith that Thou art good; that 
the spirit cannot perish; that life is worth living; faith in 
Christ, in myself, in my fellow-men, in the reality of prog¬ 
ress. 

O God, give me hope: Hope for the eternal life, the un¬ 
fettered freedom, the infinite opportunity; hope for growing 
capacity, wider outlook, more worthy success, hope that 
shall ever be buoyant toward the best. 

O God give me Love: Love for thee and for my fel¬ 
low-creatures ; love for truth, peace and beauty; love for 
the Christ-like life and the Christ-like sacrifice; Love that 
lives by service, and never fails. 

And with these great gifts, O God, give me good sense, 
solid judgment and honest humility, that the coming days 
may be full of happy work, real achievement, loyal friend¬ 
ship and innocent joy. 

These blessings I crave in the name of Jesus Christ, my 
Lord. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 


28 o 


CLOSET AND ALTAR 


EVERY MOMENT. 

“Guard me, O God, against the unseen dangers of this 
day. Every moment, from first to last, is open to thee. It 
is all a journey that thy thought has traveled. Thou canst 
guide me through it because thou hast been through it. 
The temptation lurking for me behind some false pleasure, 
thou hast noted it. A failure or flaw in my work, it is al¬ 
ready before thine eyes. The friends I am to meet, the op¬ 
portunities I am to enjoy, the delights that will minister to 
me, they are present even now in thy consciousness. And 
so, committing myself to thee, I shall not be surprised by 
the sudden assault of Satan, nor daunted by failure, nor 
over-elated by success, nor enervated by delight. I shall 
become a part of thy long thinking, thy large designs. I 
shall enter into thy peace. I shall live somewhat as my God 
lives, dwelling indeed in Him and He in me. May this be 
my blessed lot, Lord Jesus, today and all days. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 

WITH THEE. 

“Help me, my Lord and Saviour, to live day by day. 
Help me start the day with thee. May I meditate upon 
thy Word as I awake. May I genuinely pray before 
I speak to any other soul. May I know thy companionship 
all through the day, that every simple duty may be thine 
and mine. May anxiety, hurry and ill temper change to 
peace, control and cheerfulness. May I be willing to have 
thee, O Christ, live in me, that I may be like thee more and 
more from day to day. Fed by thy Word, and controlled 
by thy Will, may prayer, thought and service blend in a 
life like unto Thine. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 


CLOSET AND ALTAR 


281 


WORK THY WILL. 

“Teach me, O Father, how to ask thee each moment, 
bilently, for thy help. If I fail, teach me at once to ask 
thee to forgive me. If I am disquieted, enable me, by 
thy grace, quickly to turn to thee. May nothing this day 
come between me and thee. May I will, do and say, just 
what thou, my loving Father, wiliest me to will, do and 
say. Work thy holy will in me and through me this day, 
protect me, guide me, bless me, within and without, that 
I may do something this day for love of thee; and that 
I may, this evening, be nearer to thee, though I see it 
not, nor know it. Lead me, O Lord, in a straight way 
unto thyself, and keep me unto the end. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 


THE STRONG TOWER. 

“Merciful God, be thou now unto me a strong tower 
of defence, I humbly entreat thee. Give me grace to 
await thy liesure, and patiently to bear what thou doest 
unto me; nothing doubting or mistrusting thy goodness 
towards me; for thou knowest what is good for me 
better than I do. Therefore do with me in all things what 
thou wilt; only arm me, I beseech thee, with thine armor, 
that I may stand fast; above all things, taking to me 
the shield of faith; praying always that I may refer my¬ 
self wholly to thy will, abiding thy pleasure, and comfort¬ 
ing myself in those troubles which it shall please thee to 
send me, seeing such troubles are profitable for me; and 
i am assuredly persuaded that all thou doest cannot but 
be well; and unto thee be all honor and glory. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 


282 


CLOSET AND ALTAR 


EVENING MERCIES. 

“O Lord God, whose mercy is from everlasting to 
'everlasting, I thank thee for thy grace by which I have 
been sustained this day. Thou hast kept me and helped 
me to perform my daily labor; and Thou hast provided 
for my daily wants. Help me to accept all blessings as 
coming from thy fatherly hand. I thank thee that thou 
art ever mindful of my wants, and dost supply them 
so bountifully. Help me to receive and enjoy them with a 
grateful and loving heart. Thou art the Giver of every 
good and perfect gift and unto thee would I render un¬ 
feigned thanks for all thy goodness unto me. 

O Lord, bless the labors and experiences of the day 
that is past. Bless my intercourse with my fellowmen. 
Bless all men—relatives, friends, neighbors and enemies. 
Bestow thy saving grace upon all. Grant unto all faith 
and true repentence, and lead them to the Saviour of 
mankind. 

Bless, O Lord, thy holy Church. Prosper and bless 
all her ministers and people, all her institutions, and all 
the efforts of thy people for the extension of thy kingdom 
in the world. May the light of the gospel speedily shine 
everywhere, and banish the darkness of sin from the 
earth. May the set time soon come when all the people 
of the earth shall be thy people. 

O Lord God, I now commit myself into thy hands. Be 
thou with me when I lie down, and when I rise up; be 
thou with me in sickness and in health; and in the hour of 
death forsake me not, merciful Saviour, but grant me a 
calm and peaceful departure out of the world, and a tri¬ 
umphant entrance into thy heavenly kingdom, through 
Jesus Christ, my Lord and my Saviour. Amen. ,, 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 


CLOSET AND ALTAR 


283 


CLOSE OF DAY. 

O God, my heavenly Father, in whom I live, and move 
and have my being, I give thee humble thanks for all thy 
mercies renewed unto me every day; for life and health, 
for food and raiment, for relatives and friends, and for 
all mercies known and unknown. Grant that I may re¬ 
ceive all things as coming from thee, and show forth my 
gratitude by a holy and obedient life. 

I adore thee for thy fatherly care over me this day, 
and for all the blessings enjoyed. Grant now thy bles¬ 
sing upon all that I have done this day, as far as it 
has been in accordance with thy will; and mercifully for¬ 
give all that is evil and displeasing in thy sight. O do 
thou give me a penitent heart, and forgive all my sins. 
Let my heart be set to obey thy will and to glorify thy 
name. Enable me to resist the temptations of the world, 
the flesh and the devil. Help me to choose thy ways, and 
hligently walk therein; help me to walk in the narrow 
way which leadeth unto life, and to shun the way of sin and 
death. 

O Lord, I now commit myself, body and soul, into thy 
hands. Grant unto me refreshing repose, and let no evil 
come nigh unto me. Preserve my health and permit me 
to' rise again in the morning with thanksgiving upon my 
lips and thy love in my heart. Bless now, O Lord, all 
who are near and dear unto me, and all for whom I 
pray Be thou especially gracious unto all suffering ones. 
Help them to cast their burdens upon the Lord, and do thou 
grant unto them that peace which the world cannot give 
nor take away. Hear me for Jesus’ sake. Amen” 

"Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 


284 


CLOSET AND ALTAR 


THY WORD A LIGHT. 

“O God, my dear Father in heaven, I lift my heart and 
voice unto thee in gratitude and love. Thy mercies are 
new unto me every morning and thy faithfulness every 
night. I praise thee for life, and health, and reason; for 
food, and raiment, and home; for friends and kindred. 
Help me to remember all thy goodness, that it may awaken 
purer love and greater devotion to thee in my heart. Enable 
me not to conform my life to a sinful world, but to have 
my conversation in heaven. 

Give me strength for labors, courage for conflicts, 
patience under afflictions, fidelity to duty, and faith that 
shall endure unto the end, and shall make me more than 
a conqueror over sin and death. Grant me grace to keep 
my heart from evil thoughts, and my lips from speaking 
guile. Keep my feet from falling. Bless my intercourse 
with others. Help me to do unto others as I would that 
they should do unto me. Help me to be true and just in 
all my dealings. 

I pray for all men. Be thou merciful to all according 
to their several conditions and necessities, and may thy 
goodness and loving kindness, draw the hearts of all unto 
thyself. May the sorrows of this life lead all to thee, the 
source of life, comfort and peace. 

Bless unto me thy word, O Lord. Help me daily to 
search the Scriptures in the light of thy Holy Spirit. Im¬ 
press thy truth deeply and savingly upon my heart. May 
thy word be unto me a lamp to my feet and a light to 
my pathway. May thy word always be precious to my 
soul. May I love its precepts, understand its doctrines, 
and rest upon its promises. Lord, I believe; help thou 
mine unbelief. When I read thy word, do thou thy¬ 
self teach me. May thy truth fall upon good ground in 


CLOSET AND ALTAR 2^5 

my poor heart, and bring forth much fruit unto eternal 
life. 

O Lord, I now commit myself and all my interests 
into thy care. Bless me, keep me, forgive me, and finally 
save me through Jesus Christ. Amen.” 

“Our Father which art in heaven,” etc. 










































































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